Runaway Redemption
by Mrs. Handsome
Summary: "Why?" She could see the desperation in his eyes. "Because now I know you're not capable of killing someone." She watched him woefully. "And that comforts me." In which Hermione finds Draco at the height of his vulnerability, and they later find themselves on the run, in the midst of the War. Will they be able to find refuge in each other, and will Draco finally redeem himself?
1. Tears in Myrtle's Bathroom

His blond hair normally slicked back, stuck out wildly all over the place, and his striking ice-grey eyes lightened as he gave in to his worst fears. "I can't do this!" he shouted to himself, clutching the sink before him.

"Can't...I can't..." He flung his black sweater vest over his head and wrenched his tie off his neck. His body shook uncontrollably with tears, as he saw his reflection in the mirror facing him.

"Kill me...kill mother...I'm a...coward!" He cried, his voice punctuated with whimpers. He turned on the sink, splashing cold water on his face, in hopes of salvaging his self-control.

He grabbed at his shirt, ripping the sleeves up to look at his mark. The mark that bonded him to evils for the rest of his life. The same mark that rested on the arms of his new life...just as his duty to kill Dumbledore rested heavily on his heart.

He thought of the Death-Eaters, all lined up at the dining table in Malfoy Manor...the Dark Lord at the head, and his father boring holes into his skin from behind...not to mention the grotesque figure of Professor Burbage dripping with blood at the end of it. Wormtail, silencing her into submission...

He looked into the mirror again. He drove his fist into it. And as the glass shards hit his fingers, he ignored the blood dripping from them...just as he ignored Charity...or at least attempted to...

He pierced the skin of his chest, hating himself. Hating what they've done to him...Hating what he's done to himself.

He looked into the remaining shards of glass, still adhered to the wall...and he yelled, "_Who am I?!_"

And Draco Lucius Malfoy cried. Draco cried in spite of himself.

"Malfoy?" a voice asked, echoing throughout the bathroom.


	2. Healing

Draco looked up immediately, seeing a figure in the glass nearing him.

"Malfoy?" she asked again.

He tensed instantly, ashamed of being caught. "Get out of here, GRANGER!" He whipped around, and pointed his wand at her.

She faltered, taking a step back. "I- I'm sorry..." He was quite beautiful, really. Despite the tears running down his face, and the confused anger in his silvery eyes. Despite the malice in his voice. Despite the mark branded into his pale, fragile skin.

"Wait." He said. "How much did you hear?" He trembled slightly, losing grip of his wand.

"Malfoy...we can help you. We can all help you. Dumbledore can—"

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" he screamed at her.

"I was chosen. He'll...he'll kill my mother..."

Her eyes instinctively shifted down to his arm, looking for the mark hidden by his white shirt-sleeve. She gasped when she saw his bloody hands, and the gaping hole in his blouse.

"You're bleeding." She said quietly.

He looked at his wounds for a moment, as if he'd forgotten why they were there.

She took the opportunity to walk over to him and gently lift his hands away from his chest.

"I can heal it, you know." She glanced at him.

Draco nodded imperceptibly.

"Tergeo." She whispered to his hands, which began to cleanse themselves of his blood.

She moved her fingers to his shirt, which she began to unbutton slowly.

He flinched at her touch. "What are you doing?"

"I'm healing you." She said, annoyed.

"_Vulnera Sanentur..._" she said, moving her wand closer to the gash. "_Vulnera Sanentur...Vulnera Sanentur..._"

Draco watched as the blood from his shirt and the wound, traveled back to his body.

"Is it better now?" she asked him.

He glanced at her.

She moved her fingers to the closed wound, feeling his muscles recoil again.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

He looked at her doubtfully.

Slowly, she pressed her lips to his broken skin. He groaned. "Hermione..."

She stood up again, embarrassedly. "Sorry..."

He stared incredulously at her.

"Do you want me to go?" she started for the door.

Draco pulled her back, gently bringing his own lips to meet hers. He grabbed the edge of the sink for support, as Hermione leaned into him. Her warm lips spread heat throughout his body as soon as she touched his cold skin, and he trembled into her. "Malfoy." she mumbled, grasping his arms.

He smirked. "That's not my name." He felt her reach for his hair, and tug at the nape of his neck, wandering back to his arm. "Draco..." she muttered, as he began to kiss her harder.

He stopped, suddenly, pulling away. He looked stiffly at the mark on his arm, ashamed. "I don't need your pity kisses, Granger." He said coldly.

She stared back at him, her cheeks still flushed from the heat of the kiss. "Excuse me?"

He softened his voice, tears threatening to leave his eyes. "Don't pity me, Hermione. Don't help me." He picked his shirt up from off the floor, and buttoned it back up, grimacing once he reached his cut.

Hermione pulled him by his arm. The arm with the mark. "I don't pity you for the mark, Draco." She touched his skin softly. "I feel sorry that your childhood was ripped from you. I feel sorry that you're alone...I feel sorry that you've been forced to make the wrong choices. I feel..." She stopped, sharply, a flush rising in her cheeks again.

"Don't you understand?" Draco shouted. "No one can help me! No one!" He lowered his voice. "I shouldn't have let myself go, Granger. I shouldn't have touched you. You won't see me like this! You're not supposed to know. Don't tell...anyone!" His voice rose again, quickly, and at the force of it, she stumbled backwards.

"Not even Potter and Weasley." He spat, as though the names betrayed his lips.

Hermione glared at him fiercely. "Have it your way, _Malfoy_."

She stepped forward. "You didn't seem to be thinking about that particular detail, when you were _snogging me_!" She crossed her arms over her chest.

Draco's breath hitched in his throat. He walked over to Hermione and remained at her side for just a moment...and then walked swiftly away, his face clouded with fear.

"Draco." A deep voice called out to him, as he turned around the corridor.

He paused for a moment, blinking away his tears several times. "Professor."

Snape looked him over slowly, as if he were stringing his next words together in his mind. "Look at me."

Draco's grey eyes met Snape's black stare.

"Draco...I would...advise you...to...take your utmost care..."

"Professor, would you care to elaborate?" Draco asked sardonically.

"You...and Miss Granger...you must be very...vigilant, Draco..." he replied slowly.

"Er...why would you ask _me_ about that filthy Mudblood, Professor?" Draco stuttered.

Snape's face contorted into a hint of a smile...or quite possibly a smirk. "I saw you...in the girl's bathroom...Don't...attempt to fool me."

Draco paled. "It was nothing!"

Snape sighed remorsefully, thinking back to his own pensieve of thoughts. "Don't...lie to yourself."

He stepped away from Draco, silently ending their prior conversation. "Head back to the Slytherin dormitories, Draco..._now_!" Snape walked away, down the corridor, his black robes billowing behind him.

For once, Draco refused to comply, heading towards the dormitories, under Snape's watch, and later heading back to Moaning Myrtle's lavatory.

"Granger?" he called out, pushing open the door.

Yet, he was only greeted with silence.


	3. Secrets & Discoveries

"Meet me in the RoR, 11 o'clock sharp.

-HG"

Almost predictably, Draco seemed relieved after reading the note left by the sinks. 'I will.' He thought to himself. Checking his watch, he noticed only 30 minutes were left, and headed to the Slytherin dormitories.

"Draco, what's wrong with you?" Pansy Parkinson asked him as he entered the common room.

Draco shook his head. "Nothing, Pansy, I just rebounded a spell..."

Pansy pulled him over to where she was seated on a couch. "Do you want me to make it better?"

Draco grimaced and struggled away from her grasp. "No, thanks. I...have to meet Professor Snape." He swiftly exited the common room, and headed up to the boy's dormitories.

"I wonder what she wants me for..." Draco sighed to himself, as he dressed himself in a black suit and robes.

"Probably desperate." A smooth voice said behind him.

"Er..." Draco looked puzzled.

"Pansy? She's always following you around like a house-elf." He chuckled darkly.

"Oh." He said in relief.

"Who were _you _talking about?"

"Just Pansy, Blaise. You're quite right, she is annoying." Draco straightened his tie.

"Where are you going?" Blaise asked suspiciously.

"Another meeting with Snape." Draco lied again.

"Ah." Blaise nodded knowingly, glancing down at a strip of parchment in his hands.

"Yeah." Draco shifted uncomfortably.

"I wonder why..." Blaise started slowly. "Snape signed his name 'HG', and asked you to meet with him in the Room of Requirement instead of his own quarters in the dungeons."

Draco stopped in his tracks.

"I won't tell anyone, mate." Blaise sat on his bed thoughtfully. "Just curious as to why the Mudblood's wanting to meet with you...and why you accepted her invitation..."

"Don't call her that!" Draco snapped at him.

"What? So it's true?" Blaise observed him triumphantly.

Draco stuttered. "Uh, nothing."

He smirked and rose from the bed. "Well, I guess I'll tell Theo and Pans to sod off then, too. You know...since you're going to miss our game of Exploding Snap tonight."

Draco groaned involuntarily. He was either going to have to explain himself to Blaise...or to Theo and Pansy, later.

Blaise nodded. "Yeah."

Draco sighed. "I'll explain later, mate, I have to go."

And with that, he left the dormitories, ignored Pansy's squealing in the common room, and headed to the Room of Requirement, his heart pounding in his chest.

Author's Note: Please review if you want to see more chapters, or if you think this story should be short, but have a sequel or something...Also, if you have any suggestions, you can review or PM if it's important. :) Thanks for reading!


	4. Room of Requirement

"Granger?" Draco called out, looking over his shoulder to ensure no one stood behind him, and closing the Room's door.

"I'm here, Malfoy." She replied, turning to meet his eyes.

"What is this strange cabinet?" she said to herself, fingering the great detail of the cherry wood.

Draco stood, paralyzed. 'She mustn't know that I know about the cabinet...' he thought.

"Don't touch it Granger...it might contain dark magic!" he said, relieved when she released her hold on the cabinet, and walked over to him.

"Why am I here?" he asked her.

"Listen, Draco." She blurted. "I was thinking about earlier this evening...and...I want to help you."

"Just wait and listen!" Hermione scolded him, as she observed him scowling at her.

"I need to know what...Voldemort...wants you to do. Maybe Dumbledore can help you. You could become a spy for the Order!"

Draco regarded her coldly. "I told you, Granger. I don't need your help. And, if you desire to be an insufferable know-it-all, then I must tell you, that the Dark Lord has in fact ordered me to kill Dumbledore. I'm not joining the order. I'm a deatheater, Granger, and there's nothing to do about it. Too much...is at stake."

Hermione bit her lip. "Your mother would want you to be saved." She risked saying.

Draco's grey eyes blackened with fury. "DON'T TELL ME ABOUT MY MOTHER!" he screamed, grabbing her forcefully by the shoulders and shaking her fearlessly.

Hermione winced in pain. "You're hurting me!"

He let go of her shoulders slightly and sneered, "That's right. I wouldn't want a Mudblood like you tainting my pure hands anyways, Granger."

"You didn't say that when you were-" she started.

"It was just a bloody kiss, Granger, get over it! Just a mistake..."

Hermione's face fell. "...Alright then...I guess I'll...I guess I'll leave!" She brushed past him brusquely and left him alone. Alone with the cabinet that little did she know, would determine the life of Draco himself...and his mother.

Draco turned to the cabinet with bated breath. "This is my moment..." he whispered to himself, trying to forget Hermione.

He opened the cabinet door, hearing it creak underneath his ghostly fingers.

A green, slightly browned apple lay on top of the cabinet, and Draco reached upwards to store it inside.

"Come on, come on." He muttered, waiting for a few moments. He opened it, his breath jagged, as he noticed that that the apple was still there. "Maybe...maybe they cursed it or something..." he hoped.

Draco examined the apple closely, turned it round and round in his palm, until...It was a bite. Discreet, but visible in the round, glossy, fresh skin of the apple. He closed his eyes and opened them again, to ensure that he wasn't dreaming.

"Bloody cabinet..." he said, looking behind himself a few times as if he could hear someone behind him.

He placed the apple back inside the cabinet, and shut the door, briskly walking out of the Room of Requirement.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Haha, sorry I uploaded like 2 chapters in one day; I'm just really excited about this story, and I'm still kind of getting used to actually posting fanfiction for other's to read. ;) Also- if you have any suggestions for how often I should upload, please do comment, because I usually write about 2 complete chapters a day, but I don't know if you guys would prefer a slower, more spaced out schedule. _Or _do you think I should combine chapters to make them longer, and then upload daily/every other day? Please let me know! Thanks. ∞


	5. The War Begins

**A/N: This chapter is ****_not _****directly after the setting of chapter 4, there's a bit of a time stretch. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please remember to review if you liked it, or have any suggestions! Thanks. :)**

**RainbowJH- **Yes, Draco had some reciprocated feelings for Hermione, based on their mutual fear of the war and what was to come...However, I do not plan on him revealing to Hermione that he's loved her for 5 years or anything like that. Draco's formed a sort of fondness for Hermione since she comforted him in the bathroom, but he's not _in love_ with her...(yet) ;)******  
**

* * *

Draco stood at the top of the Astronomy Tower, clutching his wand in front of him for dear life.

"Draco. Years ago I met a boy who made all the wrong choices. _Please._ Let me help you..." His voice weak, Albus Dumbledore pleaded with him, despite his ulterior knowledge of his own assassination plans.

Draco shivered, and held back the tears threatening to fall from his grey eyes as they lightened frightfully.

"I don't need your help!" he cried out. "I have to do this! I have to kill you! Or he's going to kill _me_..."

Dumbledore sighed understandingly, as though he didn't care whether his life was in the hands of a 16 year old student or not.

"Expelliarmus!" Draco shouted, catching Dumbledore's wand with his shaking hands.

Suddenly, Draco heard screeches and sinister laughter behind him. "Ha! Come here you lot! Draco's got the ancient dimwit cornered!"

His heart sank to his stomach at her words. 'This is real. They're expecting me to...'

He felt sharp nails digging into his chest, and wild, frizzy hair wafting over his face. "Go on, boy! What are you waiting for?" Bellatrix demanded.

Draco lifted his wand higher, struggling to cast the spell.

Bellatrix tittered derisively. "Are you scared boy? Come on! _Do it!_"

He looked into Dumbledore's eyes, and shut his own, preparing for the worst.

"Move, Draco." Another voice behind him declared.

"Snape?" Draco mumbled.

"Severus...please." Dumbledore pleaded almost...unconvincingly.

"_Avada Kedrava!" _Snape shouted, as the headmaster collapsed over the edge of the tower.

Draco tried his hardest not to cry.

"Ahahahahaaha!" Bellatrix cackled. "Dumbledore is dead!" She scurried to the edge, and watched him crash, down to Hogwarts grounds. "Yes!" she screamed, shooting her wand in the air.

Draco wiped his eyes as he watched the mark in the sky.

"Come, Draco!" Bellatrix screamed, running from the tower, all of the other Death Eaters in her wake.

He followed swiftly, cringing as he watched Bellatrix wreak havoc in the Great Hall.

"What's tha' measly piece of wood o'er there?" another voice called out, pointing to the gamekeeper's hut.

Bellatrix ran to Hagrid's house, enveloping it in flames with a flick of her wand.

"Draco, do you want to have a go at it?" Yet another death-eater beckoned to him.

But he was already off and running. Running to Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The school he began to miss more than anything.

Everyone was gathered around Dumbledore's slender body below the Astronomy Tower, mourning by way of vanishing the Dark Mark with their wands raised up towards the sky.

He hid behind a pillar, watching as though the sight were forbidden.

A tear trickled down his face, as he grieved to himself. Forbidden grief.

And then Harry was running up to Dumbledore, collapsing on his corpse, and crying on Ginny's shoulder.

'Where did Potter come from?" Draco mused to himself, watching him slowly get up, and walk away, Ginny holding his hand supportively.

As everyone began to disperse, Draco peeked his head around the pillar, almost as if he were expecting something.

And then, he saw her. A pang of guilt rushed through his body as a pair of deep brown eyes met his.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, as if Hermione could hear him. She turned from him, tears in her eyes.

He watched her numbly...and eventually, pulled himself away.

'Away to the deatheaters.' He thought. 'Because _that_ is where I belong now...'


	6. The Golden Trio

"So...what really happened on the Tower, mate?" Ron asked.

Hermione slapped his arm. "Don't be so insensitive!"

Ron looked at Harry ruefully. "Well. Dumbledore and I...we went to collect a Horcrux of Tom Riddle's...and-"

"What's a Horcrux?" Ron interrupted, his gingery eyebrows raising up to his forehead.

"Ron, now's not the time..." Hermione nudged him gently.

"I'll explain later, Ron...But then, when we came back, Dumbledore hexed me with something...and I had to agree to everything he told me to do, and I had to stay below the Astronomy Tower, so if something happened to him...I wouldn't...I wouldn't..."

"You wouldn't be able to save him." Ron stated quietly, putting a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"Yeah. And then Malfoy appeared at the top of the Tower."

Hermione flinched at the name.

"Hermione, I think you were right about him. He didn't seem to want to actually kill Dumbledore. He threatened him, and disabled him...but he never killed him...

"Dra-...Malfoy didn't do it?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

"No! It was Snape." Harry spat.

"Snape?"

"Snape killed Dumbledore." Harry said again. "Not Malfoy."

Hermione raised her voice. "But Dumbledore trusted him! It couldn't have been Snape!"

Harry turned on her, enraged. "Could you stop being such a know-it-all for once! Dumbledore. Is. _Dead._ Nothing you can do, or analyze can bring him to life again. Snape...Snape killed him."

"That coward..." Ron said spitefully.

"All I have left of him..." Harry lowered his voice. "Is the Horcrux."

Ron looked inquisitively at Hermione, who shook her head, and then to Harry, who seemed to have forgotten that he hadn't enlightened his friends about the whole Horcrux situation.

"Voldemort's split his soul into 7 pieces." Harry started.

"How?" Ron asked.

"Murder." Harry answered simply. "And as Voldemort's soul splits, he can almost...store it away in different items. Dumbledore and I have already destroyed the first two..."

Hermione looked as though she'd remembered something. "Tom Riddle's diary!" she exclaimed, looking to Harry for confirmation.

Harry nodded vigorously. "Dumbledore's destroyed another Horcrux...a ring I believe...But tonight, we both needed to search for it. So...we found this..." He pulled a necklace out of his pocket.

"That's the Horcrux?" Ron stared skeptically at it.

Harry nodded again.

"We should open it." Hermione said. "It might give us a clue about how to destroy it."

"Alright." Harry said. "Step back, you two." He opened the locket fearfully, and slowly, expecting the worst.

And then he frowned. And then he threw the locket down angrily. And he cried desperately, "It's a fake!"

Hermione picked it up, carefully.

"To the Dark Lord,

I know I will be dead long before you read this, but I want you to know that it was I who discovered your secret. I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death in the hope that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more.

R.A.B."

"Who's R.A.B.?" Ron asked foolishly.

Hermione shot him a look.

"I don't know..." Harry said. "But I'm going to have to find out."

"_We_ are going to have to find out." Hermione said defiantly.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, mate. You don't have to be alone."

Harry sighed. "Look, guys. I don't want you to have to risk your lives to fight _my _battles. Dumbledore's assigned me the task-"

"We wouldn't be your best friends if we wouldn't." Ron said simply.

"I'm not going for 7th year." Harry said, looking over to Hermione triumphantly.

Hermione grinned. "Neither am I." She hooked her arms in Harry and Ron's.

Harry smiled, the first time in ages, and he looked at his best friends affectionately.

And they stayed like that, for a while, just enjoying each other's company.

'Almost like a farewell to our past lives...saying goodbye to our childhoods...' Hermione thought morosely to herself.

'But, at least we've been fortunate enough to _have_ a childhood...' she thought again, as she remembered her accidental encounter with Draco Malfoy in the bathroom.

* * *

**Author's Note/Disclaimer: **Of course since this is fanfiction, I don't own the characters or the setting, but in this chapter I also don't own the note from the locket, which I quoted directly from Deathly Hallows. The dialogue from this chapter should also be pretty similar to the dialogue from the movie/book, but I didn't quote it directly so if anything sounds exactly the same, I didn't do it on purpose. :)


	7. Sudden Visitors & Forgotten Cappuccino

_Months Later: August 1__st__, 1997 - _Luchino Caffe

"I knew something like this would happen!" Hermione cried, rummaging in her beaded bag for Harry and Ron's clothes.

"So, I packed our things a couple day before the wedding..." she said a bit sheepishly, as she noticed their shocked expressions.

Ron shook his head thoughtfully. "Blimey, Hermione..."

"Amazing!" Harry said. "And everything fits in that tiny little thing?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes, of course! I have the Undetectable Extension charm on it, so it's easy to carry, and still fits everything inside!" She patted her bag fondly. "It's not difficultly heavy, either..."

"Genius, you are..." Ron admired. "Three cappuccinos please." He told the waitress.

"How did Kingsley know what was going on then?" Harry asked

Hermione stared at him dubiously. "Isn't it _obvious_? Voldemort's taken over the Ministry!"

Ron nodded, knowingly. "I reckon half the ministry's made up of death eaters anyways."

The café door rung open, and two building workers walked in, one with a gray hood shielding his face, and the other with a lanky mop of black hair. They walked up to the cashier's counter, hands digging in their pockets for some money.

Harry looked over at them briefly, and then resumed the conversation quietly. "I bet the-"

"Harry..." Hermione said, motioning to the workers.

It seems they weren't digging for money after all.

"STUPEFY!" Harry shouted, dashing out his seat.

Their wands all drawn, Harry, Hermione, and Ron faced the workmen, who had dodged the Stun, and were now standing before them. The black-haired one edged forward, a malicious glint in his yellowish eyes, and the "worker" with the hood stepped back a bit, stumbling into the counter.

The darker Death Eater shot off a countless number of spells, aiming horribly at the trio, and they all rebounded against the café window's shattering glass everywhere.

"Confundus!" Ron exclaimed, again missing both Death Eaters as they ran behind the cash register, one of them shouting, "Filipendo!" back, sending Ron flying backwards at the force of the jinx.

"Immobulus!" Hermione stepped in, hitting the first dark-haired Death Eater squarely in the chest, and rendering him still.

Harry stunned him, and shoved the now unconscious man out of his way, searching for the second Death Eater.

"It's Malfoy." Ron called from the other side of the café. "Bloody Malfoy's hiding behind the cash register!"

He got up swiftly, making for the back exit, his hood now pushed aside from his face.

"Stupefy!" Ron bellowed, running to Malfoy furiously, only to have it countered promptly.

Hermione pushed him away from the door, snatching his wand.

He lay on the floor fearfully, shielding his face with his dirtied pale hands.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Harry said, a hint of a grin on his face.

"Cruci-" Ron started.

"Stop! Stop!" Hermione screamed, standing between Malfoy and Ron.

"What is it?" Ron asked, panting a bit.

"Let me have him." Hermione sneered, hesitatingly.

"Are you sure, Hermione?" Harry said doubtfully. "I dunno if-"

"All those years of calling me a Mudblood, damn right, I'm sure!" she kicked him convincingly.

Ron grinned at her. "Come on, 'Mione, I threw up slugs for him! Remember?"

Hermione ignored him. "Out! Both of you! Head back to Grimmauld Place."

Harry and Ron backed away, Ron looking slightly disappointed. "And put on your Invisibility cloak, Harry!" she added, as he opened the door.

Draco gaped at Hermione strangely, a mixture of fear and admiration in his eyes, which happened to be the only parts he could move.

"Muffliato!" Hermione cast, to ensure that Harry and Ron wouldn't catch anything if they happened to be snooping outside.

"Scourgify. Reparo. Reparo..." she muttered, drifting her wand around the café as almost everything in its reach repaired and cleansed itself.

She then turned to Draco, leaning down so that they were eye to eye.

He closed his eyes, expecting the worst, and she smirked. "Relashio." She whispered, releasing him from the Full-Body Bind.

He stood, holding on to the counter for support.

Hermione handed his wand back and beamed at him.

"What was that for?" he said, amazed.

"You didn't really think that I was going to torture you, did you?" Hermione asked, a bit of amusement in her voice.

Draco shifted from foot to foot. "Er...I sort of..." he looked to her guiltily. "Room of Requirement..."

She laughed, a sound Draco seemed surprised to hear from Hermione. "I've been known to...be a bit persistent..."

Draco smirked. "A bit? Scarhead and Weasel Bee wouldn't be anything without you."

Her expression turned grim. "Speaking of...why were you here anyways? I assumed Vol-"

Draco clamped his hand over her mouth. "_Don't say the name!_"

"It's taboo!" he explained to her.

"Just because you're afraid of Voldem-"

"GRANGER, THAT'S HOW I GOT HERE!" he looked as if he wanted to slap her.

"Don't talk to me like that, I didn't know!" she yelled back, a little discomfited.

"Well, you know now. Tell Potter and his friends when you get back." He panted.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "So, as I was saying, before I was rudely interrupted..."

Draco mumbled something foul under his breath.

"I assumed...er..._he_ would keep you up in Malfoy Manor, since you neglected to fulfill the task...since Snape stepped in..."

He looked at her furiously. "I'm not a coward!"

Hermione raised her eyebrow. "I never said you were! I'm glad actually..."

"Why?" She could see the desperation in his eyes.

"Because now I know you're not capable of killing someone." She watched him woefully. "And that comforts me."

Draco stared for a moment, unable to respond.

"You...you should be heading back now, Granger." He said uncertainly.

Hermione pulled him into a hug, unexpected, but received.

"I wish you luck, Draco..." she said, clutching him to her.

She pulled away, embarrassed.

"Hermione..." Draco started, wringing his hands uncomfortably.

"Yes?"

"Thanks." He looked into her eyes, and smiled, a surprising sight.

And then Hermione flew at him, and kissed him full on the mouth, wrapping her arms around him tightly. She could feel him smiling against her lips, and his hands wandered to her waist, pulling her closer...

"Oh!" a voice behind them said.

They broke apart, still out of breath from the kiss, and Hermione whipped around quickly, her wand poised in mid-air.

"Obliviate!" she shouted, and the waitress staggered back to the kitchens, a dreamy grin on her face.

Draco chuckled. "Nice work, Granger."

Hermione rolled her eyes, and walked over to the dark-haired Death Eater, promptly wiping his memory as well.

"I recognize him from the Department of Mysteries." She said.

Draco regarded him coldly. "Antonin Dolohov...My father forced me to come with him since I...failed to..." he stopped, putting his head in his hands.

"Draco, you're not evil." Hermione said, pushing his hands away. She put her hands in his, and they stayed for a few seconds in silence.

"I guess I should go." She said, moving to give him another hug, but thinking better of it.

"Bye..._Hermione_." he whispered.

She smiled at him, and then Apparated out, leaving Draco alone in the café.

"I hope we won't have to meet again this way..." he muttered to himself, sitting at one of the booths. "Hermione..."

* * *

**Author's Note-** So they meet again...lol. I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, because I actually liked writing this one compared to the others, for some odd reason...anyways, trust me, they'll meet again soon, but not in the next chapter...I have some evil things planned for Draco...*maniacal laugh*


	8. Unforgivable

**Disclaimer-** Yes, I once again quoted from Deathly Hallows. :P It's the first sentence, so not too hard to miss, and continues before Voldemort hisses impatiently.

* * *

"Draco, give Dolohov another taste of our displeasure..."

He shivered tremendously, his wand quivering as he attempted to curse his "fellow" Death Eater. He wiped his sweaty palms on his suit jacket, attempting to delay the Dark Lord's commands.

"Do it! _Or feel my wrath, yourself!_" He hissed impatiently, gesturing to the writhing Antonin Dolohov on the marble floor of Malfoy Manor.

Draco pointed his wand downwards at Dolohov, trying not to watch the pitying sight. "Cr-Cru-...Crucio..._Crucio!_" he stammered, frowning to himself as Dolohov was merely tossed around a few inches.

"Draco, you have to _feel _it!" Bellatrix seemed to appear to the scene instantaneously. "_Watch!_" She flicked her wand lazily at Dolohov, who began to elapse into seizures upon the floor.

"CRUCIO!" she shouted, cackling with glee as she watched his body spasm gruesomely on the floor with every movement of her wand.

She lifted the spell momentarily, and grinned maniacally at Draco. "See?" He nodded timidly.

Bellatrix brushed an unruly, dark curl from her face, looking to her master imploringly. "Excellent, Bellatrix...I suppose Draco will need practice on the Unforgivable Curses..."

Draco nodded again, this time with a great fervency. "We...we didn't quite...get the chance to learn them at Hogwarts..." he said, trying his best to look upset.

Voldemort turned to Draco, a dissatisfaction gracing his snake-like features, and Nagini hissing at his feet. "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry should now be...handled most eloquently by our comrade...Severus Snape."

Draco flicked his eyes desperately between him and Aunt Bella.

Dolohov now forgotten, the Dark Lord seemed intent on Draco's increasing lack of sadism, a trait that all of his Death Eaters seemed to already possess.

"Draco, just think of something you'd be cross about!" Bellatrix added, who's thirst for bloodshed obviously proved to be much more impressive than her nephew's.

Voldemort observed Draco attentively. "Come, Draco. Try it again." He pushed him forward with one long, white hand, and Draco raised his wand again.

'Think of something, think of something, _think of something!_' he shouted inwardly. And suddenly, a figure appeared in his mind's eye.

"Draco." It said, quietly beckoning.

"Draco, help me!" It said again. The figure shaped itself into a woman, slowly, as though she were molded out of smoldering fire.

"Draco, please!" she said, and he recognized his mother, now frail and unbecoming.

"Draco..." his mother called to him, clutching her side, fretfully. Another figure appeared beside her, striking a dangerous resemblance to his father. "Silence, wench!" his father screamed, slapping her across the face with the back of his hand. He kicked her to the ground, remorselessly, ignoring her upsetting whimpers and pleas. "Draco, I love you!" said his mother, only to be relentlessly kicked and brutalized by his father.

Draco held his wand tightly, and clenched his teeth at the sight.

"Draco, please!" she shouted. His father forced her up again, and punched her roughly in the stomach, and she doubled up with pain against a wall, her stringy blond hair acting as a ragged curtain, shielding her bruised face.

He felt anger. Anger breaking down the walls of his conscience, and ripping apart the good left in him. Anger traveling to every vein, every bone, every muscle in his body. And it was anger that would save his life.

Another voice echoed in his mind, sounding peculiarly familiar. "And you'll be a coward." She said, materializing above the scene. Hermione simpered, "Just. Like...Your father..."

"CRUCIO!" he screamed, blasting Dolohov into an oblivion of pain. He writhed violently on the floor, his eyes rolling brutally back up into his thrashing head.

"Well done, Draco. Well done!" Voldemort seemed pleased. "I suppose you show the vigilance of your aunt after all..." he bowed his head approvingly.

Bellatrix gleamed brilliantly with pride at his great accomplishment. "Draco, my boy!" she exclaimed, drawing her to him. "So proud..."

Draco's face glistened with sweat, and his hands shook miserably, as they praised him.

"Go on, Draco, return to your chambers." Voldemort ordered, as his desire to find cruelty in Draco withered away.

"_Now!_" he yelled, and Draco dashed back to his bedroom, wand in hand, unseen tears streaming down his face.

"He'll be well next time!" he could hear Bellatrix promising.

"_Silence!_ _The boy is weak!_" said Voldemort.

Still shaking from the prior events, Draco collapsed onto his bed, breathing heavily, his attempts to stopper his tears violently failing him. The word _coward_ resonated remorsefully with his mind, and that's all Draco could hear, as the tears continued to fall. Yet he heard one last word, as he rocked himself silently to sleep.

"Unforgivable."

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**Author's Note-** So...I hope I didn't make it too sad, I don't want to scare anyone off! Ha...ha...no? *cricket* No. Okay, then. Um. Oh, right! So, the next chapter may or may not include some Dramione action...but not in the way that you would think...Yeah, I'm going to stop trying to be mysterious now. Bye!


	9. Caught

"Hermione, I think Harry's on to something!" Ron called out, pulling her out of the tent.

"Ron, I was busy! What is it now?!" she argued, wrenching herself from his grasp, and crossing her arms exasperatedly.

Ron pointed abruptly in the distance. "_Look_!" he shouted. "'Mione, he's gone nutters!"

Hermione rolled her eyes, and turned to look at Harry, Ron creeping closer to watch.

"The deathly hallows, my invisibility cloak...the resurrection stone! GODRIC Gryffindor...I'm the chosen one!" Harry threw his invisibility cloak over his shoulders, puffing his chest valiantly. "Dumbledore's snitch!" He proceeded to run towards the tent, his torso completely obscured by the cloak.

Hermione looked over to Ron, who was grinning shrewdly. "He's bloody mad, I tell you!"

She shook her head, trying not to watch Harry's oddities from behind a tree. "Maybe...he's just a little excited about the story! I mean, he _is_ right. He does have a cloak of invisibility..."

Ron guffawed loudly. "Yeah, alright, I'm sure he just caught some snuffquarfarffle-majaggers or whatever from Mr. Lovegood..." This earned him a smack on the arm. "Ron!"

He rubbed the painful spot where she'd hit him. "Come on, 'Mione, he sold us out!"

She sighed. "Only because he was afraid for Luna. I'm sure if she were still safe, he wouldn't even _think_ of giving up Harry!"

"He's still a loony git..." said Ron.

"RON! HERMIONE! COME HERE!" Harry yelled.

They ran to the tent swiftly, pretending as though they haven't been listening the whole time.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, ignoring Ron sniggering behind her.

Harry grinned widely. "I think...I might be the Master of Death."

At this point, Ron excused himself to the tent quietly, in a failing attempt to hide his hysterics.

Harry frowned. "What's his problem?"

"Er...just a little sick. Anyways! Harry, are you sure? It's just some story from a children's book, it can't be but so authentic." She replied.

Harry waved his Invisibility Cloak in the air vigorously. "Look, Hermione! The cloak of invisibility, just like Mr. Lovegood told us!"

She grimaced. "Yes, but Harry-"

"And remember those visions I had? Of Voldemort searching for this particular wand? Ollivander...Gregorovitch..."

Hermione's eyes widened, and Harry nodded brightly. "Yes! Yes! I think he's looking for-"

"No! Harry! You said his name!" She ran to the tent fretfully, and brought Ron out, who was still sniggering occasionally to himself.

Harry's expression darkened, as the meaning of what she'd said finally sunk in. "Hermione, get your bag! Ron, grab our wands! We have to go, quickly!"

Hermione and Ron hurried inside the tent, while Harry threw his cloak over himself, begging them to move along faster.

"Alright, come on, come on, let's go!" he shouted, as they reappeared, Harry attempting to fit all three of them underneath his cloak.

"_Not...so...fast."_ Another voice called out. Harry, Ron, and Hermione tried to apparate, but felt strong hands separating them, and grabbing Harry's silvery cloak.

"I reckon we can keep this..." one of the Snatchers said.

Another, presumably the leader, inspected Harry closely. "And who might you be?" He pushed back his mess of black hair from his forehead and grinned at the sight of his lightning bolt scar.

Harry didn't bother to answer. "Why its Harry Potter, I bet...are you not?" he inquired.

Ron, who had hidden their wands in his shirt, shifted uncomfortably as the Snatcher holding him captive, asked him of his identity. "Seamus Jordan." He replied.

"And you?" the Snatcher beside him asked Hermione. "Lavender Brown." she choked out.

The head Snatcher laughed vehemently. "Don't even bother with them, boys. I bet that one's Hermione Granger..." he said, staring pointedly at Hermione. "And this one over here..." he jabbed a finger into Ron's chest roughly. "Must be Ronald Weasley...how's that spattergroit coming, mate?"

Ron paled, realizing the severity of the situation. 'Where are these bloody Snatchers going to take us?!' he thought to himself.

"Malfoy Manor..." one of them said, as though he'd read Ron's mind. "We're taking you to Malfoy Manor."

Hermione's eyes widened, and she struggled harder against her captor.

"Scared, Mudblood?" he sneered.

"She should be excited she'll even get the opportunity to step within a pureblood's realm!" The Snatchers all guffawed and cackled loudly, grabbing the trio's hands together, and disapparating from the wood.

* * *

**Author's Note-** I know, I know, I missed my daily upload. I'm sorry! I wasn't feeling so well yesterday, and I didn't have the energy to edit the chapter last night. :( Anyways, for my lame, mysterious hint for the next chapter...you know what, scratch that, y'all know Draco and Hermione are going to meet again!


	10. Mudbloods In Malfoy Manor

They arrived at an iron gate, distraught with time, yet still gleaming with the taciturn conceit of prosperity. Inscribed on a rusting silver sign on the gate, were the words "Malfoy Manor".

Hurriedly, Hermione cast a bit of wandless magic on Harry, who immediately began to cringe and shudder as his face contorted wildly; his cheeks bulging like Ron's during Christmas feast, his eyes appearing beady and watery, and his mouth twisting up into an agonizing pucker. Harry himself, inwardly thanked Hermione for her ingenuity, but suffered from the aching pain she inflicted upon him.

Hermione gulped, plans of action racing through her mind, as of how to escape the place they hadn't even entered yet. She comforted herself with the thought that Draco was most likely at home, but her hopes immediately soured as she realized there wasn't much he could do to help them...if he even decided to. 'What are we?' she wondered to herself. 'I wouldn't necessarily call us _friends_...'

However, she never got the opportunity to think about her affiliation with Draco Malfoy, as another figure, further off in the distance, opened the door with a huff, and walked rapidly down to the gate. Her twisted black hair hung precariously over her face, and she was dressed in a copious amount of black material, that tossed in the wind as she walked.

"What is your business here, Scabior?" she asked, her tone disdainful. She peered through the gate at the Snatchers, who were concealing Ron, Harry, and Hermione with the invisibility cloak.

Scabior, apparently the head Snatcher, unveiled his find of the day—The Golden Trio.

Bellatrix's eyes widened, and a smile of satisfaction graced her haughty features. "Well." She began, beckoning them inside. "I suppose we can accommodate your circumstances in the drawing room."

The Snatchers shuffled them inside, most of them gazing around the manor excitedly, as if they were there predominantly to steal the Malfoy's possessions.

"Don't touch!" Bellatrix snarled, slapping the hand away of a rather daft Snatcher. She marched them into another room, presumably the drawing room, where the Malfoys were gathered together.

"CISSY!" Bellatrix called, dragging Harry forward. "I've brought guests!"

Narcissa and Lucius stepped forward, excitement gleaming in the latter's eyes. "Is it really?" Lucius asked, reaching one hand out to push Harry's hair from his forehead.

"I dunno..." said Scabior, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. "Could be someone else under the Polyjuice Potion...someone Potter's sent to confuse us..."

At the mention of Harry, Draco turned quickly, suddenly intrigued by his father's conversation...or rather, whether Hermione was with them...He felt a sharp stab in his chest, and his heart pounded fearfully, as he caught her eye. He tried to manage a smile for her, but, remembering his place in the situation, he looked away, dreading what he'd hoped his father _wouldn't_ ask him next...

Lucius frowned, ceasing his inspection of Harry's scar. "_Or_, you foolish nitwit...it could be Potter under a charm..." He turned around, calling to his only son. "Draco! Come..."

Draco swallowed in trepidation, walking over to Harry at his father's orders.

"Is this the real Potter?" his father asked of him, pushing him closer.

Draco pretended to inspect Harry, after already concluding that he _was, _in fact, the real Potter, and avoided Hermione's gaze, as well as Ron's, who was glaring at him menacingly.

"Er...I don't think so..." he said, wincing as he felt his father's grip on his shoulders tighten. "But...it...it could be..." Draco finished uneasily, looking to Lucius for approval.

Bellatrix, who was lazily twirling her wand between her fingers earlier, suddenly cried out furiously, "What is this?!" She grabbed a gleaming, silver sword out of one of the Snatcher's rucksacks. Said Snatcher looked at her proudly, as though it were that difficult to grab an obvious-looking sword from Hermione's beaded bag.

"Found it in the little Mudblood's bag..." he replied. "We reckoned that it belonged to us...we'll probably fetch a few Galleons for it on Knockturn Alley..."

"A few Galleons?!" Bellatrix fumed. "I _reckon_ it belongs in my vault, not some Mudblood's purse, _or in the grasp of some filthy Snatcher_!" With a few irate flicks of her wand, she conjured a myriad of ropes, which tied all the Snatchers up seamlessly, and sent most of them tumbling down on the floor, their bags of stolen goods scattering on the marbled floor.

"Madwoman!" one of them shouted frightfully, attempting to release himself from the ropes that would only strangle him tighter.

"Draco, send them outside!" she yelled for him loftily, her sights now set on Hermione, who was trembling despite her release from her captor.

Draco went quickly outside, dragging the Snatchers behind them with his wand, and hoped to get back before Bellatrix decided to do anything to Hermione. "Get out of here!" he shouted at them, opening the gate, and pushing them out. "When are you gonna release them ropes? And where's our bags?!" one of them protested.

Draco regarded him coldly. "There are things more important than your idiotic thievery." He said, shutting the gate closed with a _bang. _

'Things like whether Hermione Granger is lying dead in the middle of my floor or not...' he thought gruesomely to himself.

He sprinted back to the Manor, fearing the worst, yet holding his worries back, in fear of his family discovering his sympathy for a Mudblood.

And as he stopped before the room, his heart leapt in his throat. Harry and Ron were nowhere to be found, and Hermione was lying on the floor, Bellatrix was poised over her with a knife, and his parents were sitting by the fireplace, completely oblivious to her cries.

...Basically his worst fears at the moment.

Draco paced outside the drawing room, his heart racing, and thoughts swarming his mind. 'What am I supposed to do now?!' he panicked, trying not to take notice of Hermione's blood-curdling screams.

'Okay, I can go in there, stun Aunt Bella and father, and then run with Hermione like the wind!' After a couple moments of contemplating _that_ plan, he mentally slapped himself as he realized the stupidity of it all. 'What if...I ask her if I can help?' he began to think. 'And then apparate away with Hermione?'

He tapped his foot impatiently. 'But what if she gets splinched or something, she's already lost enough blood!' he thought, frustrated. His train of thought instantaneously halted, as he heard Bellatrix shriek, "Crucio!", and Hermione pleading with her to give mercy. He felt tears prod the corners of his eyes as he listened, afraid to take action.

'It's Hermione or nothing.' He thought, as he abandoned all logic and ran straight into the drawing room. "Wait!" he shouted, cringing as he heard the urgency in his voice. Bellatrix looked up at him questioningly, the her sadistic glint still shining maniacally in her eyes. Draco tried not to look down at Hermione, who was bleeding endlessly onto the floor.

"I would like to torture the Mudblood." He said daringly, triumphing as Bellatrix stood up, and patted him on the back. "Ah, my nephew has finally adopted my good genes!" she cackled. "Have a go, the Mudblood's free!"

Narcissa turned around slowly, raising her eyebrow at Draco's sudden interest in torturing her. After all, it was she, who comforted her son as he lay in bed, crying forbidden tears. It was she, who held his hand under the banquet table as the Dark Lord decided to torment his newest victim as they dined. And it was she, who made the Unbreakable Vow with Severus Snape, to ensure his safety as he was granted the task she knew he would never be capable of carrying out. And she watched him avoid her eyes, because he knew it too.

Draco reached up for Bellatrix's dagger, flinching as he saw her handiwork on Hermione's arm; the word 'Mudblood' carved haphazardly onto an expansion of pale skin.

Bellatrix recoiled, raising her eyebrow at Draco, who compared her stare for a moment, to his mother's. "Are you not going to use the Torture Curse?" she demanded, straightening her black corset with one hand, and stroking the edge of her dagger with the finger of another.

Draco gulped, pushing back the urge to vomit as he noticed Hermione's crimson blood glistening on the blade. "N-No..." he said weakly. "I'd rather do this without a wand. See her blood dripping from my fingers..."

"Your bloodlust is admired, my nephew!" Bellatrix beamed at him, handing over her precious dagger. "Have a go."

Draco took it from her carefully, and then to his mother, who was watching him curiously. He stood, staring back at her for a few seconds, until finally, she gave a curt nod. As to whether she approved of him torturing a Mudblood, or saw through his tentative lie, Draco did not know. But he felt consoled for a moment, as he knelt down by Hermione's side, grabbing her arm roughly. She moaned, and opened her eyes, which widened as she saw him. Grabbing the dagger tightly in his hands, he brought it down violently...on the floor.

"Draco, what are you doing?" Bellatrix challenged. "Just aim for her arm, boy!"

He looked up into her crazed eyes, and nodded, imperceptibly. "Sorry, Aunt Bella. I'll have another go. I just...I just need to get a bit closer..."

With that, he collapsed on top of Hermione, and apparated the both of them away. To where? Neither of them knew.

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**Author's Note-** *evil laugh* See, another chapter! Yay! Lol, there will be a lot more romance in the future...just you wait and see...


	11. The Shrieking Shack

"Granger."

"Granger?"

"Granger! Wake up!"

Hermione found herself waking up on a musty four-poster bed with one leg missing, and she was being prodded by a vaguely familiar blond-haired boy who upheld a solemn expression as he watched her. "Gahhh...ohhh...er...what's...'appening..." she murmured, feeling around blindly for whoever called her earlier.

Suddenly, she seemed to come back to her senses, jolting upright, and shouting, "Where am I?!" That exclamation only resulted in a shock of pain through her arm, which she noticed was propped up in some sort of makeshift splint.

"Shrieking Shack." Draco said, adjusting the split to her arm.

"Draco?" she looked around the room suspiciously. "What are you doing here?"

He ran his hands through his hair and sighed. "Don't you remember? I-"

"Oh, Merlin...where's RON AND HARRY?!" she shouted, ripping off the splint, and getting out of bed furiously.

"Hermione! Listen, we don't have much time. I don't know where Ron and Harry are, and I honestly don't care at this point. Now, get back in that bed, and then we can-"

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN, YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY ARE! FOR GODRIC'S SAKE, YOU SHOULD AT LEAST-"

"FOR ONCE, JUST SHUT YOUR DAMN MOUTH!" Draco bellowed, resisting the urge to shake her violently until she grasped the severity of the situation. Instead, he pointed vehemently at her left arm, where the 'Mudblood' scar was still visible. "I was out there saving your life, that's what! Get your arse back in that bed, put that _damn_ splint back on, and wait for a godddamn explanation!"

Hermione looked at her arm, and then to Draco, and then she opened and closed her mouth wordlessly, as her realization finally began to sink in. "So...it's true..." she mumbled, sitting back on the bed in defeat.

He raised an eyebrow, and began to fumble with the splint, still slightly angered by her oblivious disposition from before. "What's true?"

"That it wasn't all just a dream..." she flinched as he positioned it on her arm.

Draco paled, thinking back on the events prior to their conversation. 'Does she really not remember...' he thought to himself. "Well, you've only been unconscious for a couple hours, if that helps any." he said. "What did you dream about?"

"It was more of a nightmare, really...and I suppose you already know about..." she pointed to her arm warily, and he nodded. "But then...right when she was about to use the Cruciatus Curse on me...I saw your face... And...and then you were almost about to..." Hermione glanced at her arm again timidly. "And I lost hope for a moment...I sort of trusted you, you know..." He smirked at this marginal confession. "And then you...you kind of...fell on top of me...and then all I can remember is this pain in my side...and I suppose you apparated, since we ended up here..."

He nodded encouragingly. "Is that it?"

Hermione shook her head carefully, as if she were trying to put her next recollection to words. "N-no..." she said. "I also remember a dragon."

Draco froze. "A dragon?"

She nodded. "It was there, with us in...Hogsmeade, I think...and it...it kind of...led us here..." She turned to him abruptly. "Draco, can you produce a Patronus?"

A sudden shadow eclipsed Draco's face, and he avoided her eyes swiftly. "I think that's enough talking for today, Hermione. I don't know how long we can stay here, but for now you need your rest." He began to guide her back down on the pillow.

"I want to know what happened!" she protested, refusing his efforts, and instead sitting back up on the bed. "And you didn't answer my question!"

"No." said Draco stonily. "I can't."

She looked astounded. "Wait, but-"

"Go to sleep, Hermione."

"But if you'd just-"

"Go to sleep, Hermione."

"No, I want an explanation for-"

"Granger, if you don't piss off, I'll silence you." He said, moving off the bed.

"But this isn't fair! I deserve to know!"

He ignored her, instead walking around the room, and looking through the windows cautiously. He smirked to himself, as her objections faded away into the quiet. Looking back at her for a moment, he walked out the door of the shack, a million apprehensions flying through his mind.

* * *

_"Hermione, Hermione...please don't be..."_

_He felt himself go cold, and everything around him became a blur, as they sucked the life out of everything around him. All he could feel was the light evading him leisurely, and the darkness taking over its reign. Almost empty he was, holding Hermione in his bleeding hands. He could barely feel her against him, but he could tell she was suffering, shivering intensely, her skin ice cold despite the warm weather. She turned to him, eyes unseeing, yet she uttered his name, delicately, weakly. Draco wanted to collapse against her, surrender to the cold, let the darkness take him hostage. But he embedded the thought in his mind that he needed to get out. Hermione was deteriorating in strength before his eyes. _

_He was her only hope._

_He struggled to think of blissful thoughts, as his soul seemed to drag his memories along with the darkness. He couldn't fail Hermione, he knew; but he couldn't think. She said his name again, a laboring whisper. He had to do it, for Hermione, for whatever happening to be good. He had to. He imagined of what survival could be like, after he'd cast his silver Patronus across the skies, invincible. Hermione would wrap her arms around him, and press her sweet lips to his once again. He could feel her warmth as she hugged him to her, laughing his name. She was never his, but he could pretend. He could always pretend. _

_"Expecto Patronum!" he shouted, holding her to him for dear life. "Expecto Patronum!" _

_Nothing happened, and he began to lose all hope again. But then he heard her voice in his head again, dripping with the tender affection that is dear. "Draco." He raised his wand. "Draco, I love you." _No she doesn't. _Another voice said in his mind. _She'll never love you. She'll love anyone but you. Who are you? Some coward that bullied her half her life? Ha! Don't get your hopes up, Draco... _He lost grip of his wand, tears clouding his already distorted vision. "Draco! Listen to me!" she said again. "I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you...I love you...I...and...love...and...you..."_

_"Expecto Patronum!" he said, surprised when a spark erupted from his wand, which he held tighter in his hands. "Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patr-" Suddenly, something else rose from his wand. The silver sparks became a figure, slowly building itself up in the air. It floated, higher, and began to circle around them, gradually becoming a snake, then a lizard, and then...a dragon. He stumbled backwards, still holding his wand and Hermione for dear life. The dragon looked at him for a moment, its eyes silvery orbs, and it turned back to the dementors, which were creeping closer. And it breathed fire, a silvery kind of fire. And the dementors were blasted away, as the dragon's fire resounded again, and again, and again..._

_Draco glanced at the dragon for just a moment, and then grabbed Hermione and ran. He saw a small shack, dimly in his torpor. He struggled to open the door, and then he pushed her inside. "Hermione..." he managed to say, closing it behind them. _

_She opened her eyes once, and then she collapsed once again in his arms. He saw the fire glowing in them for just a second...and that solaced him... _

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**Author's Note-** *whew* Well, that awkward bit is over! Anyone get the Avett Brothers reference? ;)


	12. The War Continues

**Author's Note: **So, you may be wondering why I have posted in a couple days...I must tell you that I was stuck with a bad case of spattergroit (aka writer's block), and I was thinking about how this chapter should go today...and I just grabbed some parchment and a quill (aka my laptop), and just went for it! I hope you guys like it!

* * *

Draco returned inside after collecting his thoughts, wondering how he and Hermione would be able to survive there. Despite the fact that everyone avoided the Shrieking Shack...what if someone found them? He was almost positive that Bellatrix told the Dark Lord what had happened...especially if Potter and Weasley managed to escape...And how were they supposed to live here, with no food, and only one wand? Hermione had her beaded bag but he doubted she would store actual money in there...And even if they did...the Death Eaters would probably already be on their tracks...

'I'm such a prick...' he said out loud. "How are we supposed to live _here_..."

But deep down, Draco knew that Hermione wouldn't be alive if he hadn't rescued her from Bellatrix's clutches. He just didn't think he was the man to do the rescuing. "Draco Malfoy, the coward...can't kill someone, can't save someone..." He leaned against the door somberly. "What _can_ I do?"

"You can stop feeling sorry for yourself and realize the bigger picture." Said Hermione, who was propped up on her elbows, watching him out of the corner of her eyes. "We're all suffering."

Draco didn't even bother to turn to look at her. "Some suffer more than others, Granger."

She smiled bitterly. "What? And you're one of those who do? At least you're not Har-"

"Oh right. It seemed to have completely slipped from my mind." He said loudly. "This war revolves around the Golden Trio. We all have to endanger our lives, and families, and dignity, just to make sure that _you three_ can relax comfortably in some forest, and find whatever the hell he's looking for."

Hermione shot out of the bed before the smirk could even begin to emerge on Draco's face. "At least we're on the right side!" she shouted. "At least we're trying! Harry never asked anyone to die for him, but you know what?!" She glared fiercely at him, daring him to speak. "_At least we're on the right side._ We're doing what we can to save whatever's left of what _your_ side's destroying! We're willing to risk our own lives for whatever's out there! US! And have you been doing? Crying in a bathroom and lounging in Malfoy Manor?! You're such a..." She faltered, as she saw the look on his face.

"No, continue, Granger. I'm such a what?" he said coldly, casually sticking his hands in his pockets. She didn't answer. "I'm sorry if I wanted to aid the side that so rightfully wants me dead. I'm sorry if I wanted to save your goddamn life." He strode over to her, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "I should have known. What are you going to do now? Report me to the Order?"

"I- I- Well, maybe if- "she started.

"Maybe _I _should chuck you out right now. Leave it to Greyback and his gang, to finish you off, I'm sure. He'd be delighted at the prospect of some fresh meat...Although I'll have to warn him..." he stepped closer, his lips barely caressing the edge of her ear. "This Mudblood might want to put up a fight..." He sneered, straightening up as he talked.

Hermione gave him a strange look, he could almost see the fear in her eyes. "Why don't you finish me off yourself then, Malfoy? I know you have your wand in your trouser pocket."

He smirked darkly, and pulled it out. "This? It's my mother's wand, actually. But anyways, Granger, you'll probably want to get going. Potter and Weasel will be waiting."

She frowned at him. "I was going to say I was sorry."

"Sorry for what? You didn't call me a coward, you only thought it...that's exactly what you were thinking." He said, as she opened her mouth to protest. "Adjust your splint." He added indifferently, as it began to slip off her shoulder.

"If you were a coward, then why did you save me?" she said.

He ran a hand through his hair, reflectively. "Just thought it would be the right thing." Draco refused to meet her eyes.

She smiled, discerningly. "Really, now? Since when did Death Eaters want to do the right thing?" He folded his arms uncomfortably. "Since when did you have a conversation with me?" he said, attempting to change the subject.

She looked at him knowingly. "Since you stopped making all the wrong choices...Look, I can't pretend that none of this is happening...everything...everything is changing...we don't have time to- to care about who did what, or when. All I can do...is judge you for who you are now."

Draco didn't know how to respond, and he just watched her for a moment, taking in everything. His resentment seemed to melt away, and he felt a pang of regret for what he said earlier. "I don't- I don't know who...who I am..." he confessed.

He studied her face, and he could see...pity?...repulsion? Instead, she took his hand hesitantly, and said wearily. "Perhaps we can find out." His hand felt warm in hers, and he felt...pure, almost. Purer than any feeling he'd encountered at the Manor, or in the Slytherin common room with his friends...purer then life, even. His life, punctured with the iniquities his society permitted, imposed perhaps. But here, as he held Hermione's hand, it felt right. As if she could understand what he felt at the moment. She looked into his eyes uncertainly, and he embraced her, slowly, painstakingly. And as he held her in his arms, the silence wrapping around them evocatively...he felt more than he had in ages...he felt alive...all he knew was the feel of her with him. He felt safe, for once, alive, pure, content. She was right...everything was changing...there was no time to battle each other...there was a better war worth fighting for.

And then she pulled away, and they exchanged glances awkwardly...yet he could see a tiny flicker of a smile obscured in her brown eyes. Hermione cleared her throat. "So...er...if we _are_ going to be living here together...I suppose I should make a few moderations!" She held out a hand expectantly. "May I have your wand?"

He grimaced slightly, and then handed it over. "Do what you must, Granger..."


	13. Insufferable Know-It-All Strikes Again!

"Bloody hell, Granger..." Draco said, scanning the room captivatedly.

Hermione laughed. "You're beginning to sound like Ron."

He immediately took on a solemn expression, and mumbled something about 'never saying...Weasel...'

She ignored him. "It _did_ take quite a bit of wandwork, now that you've mentioned it! Let's see..._Descendo...Erecto...Evanesco...Tergeo...Scourgify. .._"

Draco watched her amusedly. "No, Granger, I was wondering how you could pull all of those things out of that bag over there..." He pointed at said bag.

"Well!" she huffed. "The Undetectable Extension Charm isn't really the most profound charm, I must say..."

"It is to me, when I see someone pull a tent out of _that._" He furrowed his brows together as if the idea were preposterous.

"I only took it out because I needed to get to the other things! Besides, the other tent was equipped with a wider variety of-"

Draco blinked. "_There was another tent in there?!_"

* * *

Hermione sat on the four-poster bed, which she'd long since repaired, and absentmindedly watched Draco pace around his own makeshift sleeping area, apparently lost in thought. She felt a bit incomplete...derisory to be honest. For the past couple of days they'd been surviving on lone candies in Hermione's beaded bag, and were reduced to regularly casting 'Scourgify' on themselves as a failing replacement for taking a shower.

'How can we continue to live this way?' she thought reproachfully to herself, tearing her eyes away from Draco. 'All we've pretty much been doing is waking up- arguing for a bit, complaining, and then falling back asleep! I'm sure we're safe here, but...it doesn't feel like we're doing anything worth doing...we should at _least_ take out some money for emergencies and food...and maybe then I can convince Draco to help me find Harry and Ron...' She looked up at Draco again, who had ceased his pacing, and was instead staring fixatedly at a wall. 'Might as well give it a shot...'

"Draco." She said, breaking him out of his reverie. He looked up, disconcerted, as she began to relay her thoughts to him. "I think we need to go to Gringotts."

This time, he raised one eyebrow questionably, and waited for her to elaborate. She flushed a bit, clasping her hands in front of her. "Well...I suppose...we need money, don't we? We can't live like this for long..."

His brow shot higher up his forehead, and a dubious smirk began to grace his greying features. "_What is it?_" she asked exasperatedly. He shrugged. "And how do you _suppose_ we'll get into Gringotts? Don't forget, you're a member of the Trio." He said, pronouncing the last of his sentence bitterly.

She shook her head insufferably. "And _you've_ saved a member of the Trio, however much you attempt to forget it." He threw her a fleeting look. "Perhaps we can disguise ourselves? To get into the Malfoy vault, of course, not mine."

"As who?" Draco asked doubtfully. "The Malfoy vault is guarded more than the Sorceror's Stone." He snorted.

"Well, seeing as Harry, Ron, and I successfully found and recovered the Sorceror's Stone, I suppose that won't be a problem!" she replied, jokingly. "But, no. I believe I packed some Polyjuice Potion in my bag..."

Draco folded his arms impatiently. "_As who?_" he repeated.

"Your parents." She said hastily, as he opened his mouth to retort. "Look, all we have to do, is take the Polyjuice Potion, take out some gold, and then-"

She stopped at the incredulous look on his face. "How do you expect to get their hairs then, Granger?" Draco challenged, his face now triumphant as hers fell. "What; are we going to Apparate to the Manor, Stupefy my parents, steal their hairs, and then leave the place?" His voice dripped with sarcasm.

Hermione shook her head enthusiastically. "No! But! I remember reading in Moste Potente Potions, that the hair from a wizard or witches' wand can produce the same effect in a Polyjuice Potion! You said you had your mother's wand, am I correct?" She held out her hand for it, demandingly.

He retrieved it from his pocket warily, and then handed it over. "How am I supposed to go with you then?" he asked.

She beamed at her own astuteness. "Simple! I'll just change your appearance with a bit of magic...Let's say that you're a friend of mine...or perhaps, a sibling?"

"In case you hadn't noticed, my mother only has one sister, who coincidentally is the reason why we're here in the first place. So, no." He narrowed his eyes at her, almost disappointed that he couldn't find any flaws in her plan. "When are we supposed to be doing this anyways?" he asked, feeling a pang of guilt as he watched her eyes shift down to the scar on her left arm.

Hermione looked up again, equally thankful for a change of subject. "Why not tomorrow? The sooner the better!" she said brightly.

He looked around the room, as if trying to find someone else that found her idea utterly absurd. "Whatever, Granger."

"It would be nice if you called me Hermione, you know." She said quietly, her cheeks flushing furiously as she refused to meet his eyes.

Draco seemed taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"Well...now that we're facing these circumstances of course...we might as well make an attempt to become friends." She said matter-of-factly.

"And we aren't?" he said cumbersomely.

Hermione looked up at him once more. "I don't know what we are." She confessed.

He smirked. "Well, then, _Hermione_. Perhaps we can find out." He grabbed her waist softly, pulling her towards him, leaning in as he noticed her breath hitch in her throat. "But not today..." he said, releasing her from his grasp. "Fancy a mint from that dreadful bag of yours?" he added.

She glowered at him, evidently embarrassed. "Sure, why not?" she said calmly, digging pointedly in her bag.

"Thanks, _Hermione_." He sniggered, disregarding the torrent of curse words she seemed to be muttering under her breath.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Ah, I just love Draco, don't you? Alright, anyways, next chapter is soon, as always...look forward to it, because I'll inform you that some interesting stuff is gonna happen...I suck at author's notes...Er...tell me how you like the story so far; is it dragging a bit, or does it need some more Dramione fluff...I really take your opinions into account...hmmm...dunno what else to say, but Merlin's beard it's pretty late! G'night! (aka time to peruse Pinterest for an hour before I drag myself to bed)


	14. Polyjuice Potion

"How do I look?" Draco inquired, his eyebrow raised questionably. His previously white-blond hair had been transformed into a dull, soft black, which accompanied with an overgrown mustache, and short beard, almost made him unrecognizable.

"Fine." She said, studying him closely. "I didn't want to do much, since you and I would have to look similar, if you're to act as my long-lost cousin. I wish I could do something with the eyes though...it nearly gives you away." She paused for a moment to adjust her emerald brocade jacket. "It would have been a good idea for you to wear contacts or something of the like..." she muttered to herself.

"What's that?" he asked.

"Just a Muggle alternative to glasses..." she replied. "Never mind that, I suppose I could just make your eyebrows a bit bushier..._Vultus Capillus_!"

Instantly, his eyebrows thickened to the point of immediate opacity, and Hermione quickly lowered Narcissa's wand to prevent them from appearing fairly burlesque. "Alright, much better." She nodded approvingly. "What is it?" she asked, noticing the traumatized expression on Draco's face.

He shook his head as if to clear away his thoughts. "Er...nothing...it's just a bit strange to have an identical copy of my mother trying to enlarge my eyebrows, in case you haven't noticed..."

Hermione smiled shrewdly. "Well, we'd better get going." She stuffed her beaded bag and wand inside of her jacket, and held out an arm to Draco. "It's better for us to Apparate a few meters from Gringotts; it would look fairly suspicious if Narcissa Malfoy simply walked out of the Shrieking Shack. Take my arm!"

"Hold on, Grang-" Draco started, but his speech was instantly cut off as the shack warped around them, and Hermione's hand became a blur in his, and he felt a sharp pull at his abdomen...and then, finally, they were there.

"Alright, remember the plan." Hermione said hurriedly. "I ask to get to my vault, you provide identification, and if anything goes wrong, perform the Imperius Curse, and get out of the vault as quickly as we can. Oh, and your name is Cepheus Black. Is there anything I'm missing?"

"You don't sound like my mother..." he pointed out. "She's a pureblood, remember, and her voice as a bit of a sharp edge to it when she's impatient." He frowned. "Believe me, I know..."

And with that, they both walked into Gringotts, Draco scowling at any passerby, as if to make up for Hermione's anticipated temper. "Watch where you're going!" he sneered at a particularly lanky teenage boy. She nudged him roughly. "Just getting into character, bugger off..." he muttered under his breath to her.

"No!" she whispered back. "Look ahead of you!"

His eyes followed her instructions abruptly, and his heart pounded faster in his chest as he caught sight of the dark, sadistic figure that is Bellatrix Lestrange.

* * *

**Author's Note- **Oh, snap, Bellatrix is back! I know this chapter is quite short, but I didn't want to make one really long chapter, solely for the purpose of this delightful cliffhanger. It'll be worth it though, I swear. Also...what did you think of my facial hair spell? Invented it myself. ;)


	15. Gringotts

Instinctively, Draco grabbed Hermione's hand, and brought her closer. 'This can't be happening...' he thought wildly. 'Not again...'

"I _don't_ need your assistance, Cepheus!" Hermione said, a sharp, ringing tone to her usually composed voice. She slapped his hand away, and walked up to Bellatrix, an arrogant expression on Narcissa's face. Draco followed behind her, his mind racing. '_What the hell is she doing?_'

Bellatrix turned around, refusing to meet her 'sister's' eye's for some reason. "Dear sister, what, pray tell, is your business here?" Hermione said, her voice wavering a bit.

"Attending to my vault of course..." Bellatrix replied, a bit of a rough edge to her voice. "I'm suffering from a cold, er, Cissy, I suppose you are intending to enter your vault as well?"

Draco raised a black, bushy eyebrow. "We're actually just going on our-"

Hermione interrupted. "What... happened to that goblin?" she demanded, a look of unusual curiosity gracing Narcissa's haughty features.

He looked in the direction of her accusing finger—for good reason. Said goblin had a preoccupied, daft look on his face. "Yes...missus, I suppose identification may pass my sharp gaze once this time! Shall we go?"

"What's going on?" Draco called out, watching Bellatrix suspiciously walk from the bank's front room, the goblin tottering drunkenly behind her. Hermione stepped on his foot harshly, the sharp edge of her high heel digging painfully into his shoe. He could catch bits of what she mumbled under her breath next—something about "provoke" and "almost there".

Bellatrix turned slowly, fumbling with something on her skirts. "Nothing concerning you!" she shouted violently; a few other goblins turned from their desks to watch. "Now we'll be going then..." she said in a quieter tone, pushing the loony goblin to a cart before them.

Hermione looked around quickly, studying the uncompromising-looking goblins behind her. "Why don't we...why don't we join you? Bella?" she asked, earning her a sharp pinch on the arm from Draco. She pushed his hand away softly, as if to say, 'Just trust me; let's go.' Her 'sister' stared at the two for a moment, and then nodded her head imperceptibly, beckoning them to the cart, and shutting the huge iron doors separating the levels of vaults from the main hall of goblins.

They all stepped in, trying to avoid the crack in the bottom of the wooden cart, and shielding their eyes from the huge light at its rear. Hermione grabbed Draco's arm instinctively, as it lurched forward, launching them into darkness. An odd look crossed his face, and she blushed, refusing to meet his eyes, and then looking toward Bellatrix, hoping she hadn't seen the affectionate exchange. Fortunately, she was instead peering out at something in the distance, a wall of some sorts—made up of a silvery blue, rippling fabric. "What is that?" she said, her eyes growing wide.

Draco looked incredulously at her, absentmindedly beginning to stroke his silky, black beard. 'Hasn't she _been_ here before?' he thought to himself. 'Perhaps the regulations have changed...'

Suddenly, the blue drapery, became almost transparent as the cart's light hit it, and the cart itself dashed towards it even faster; as if it were possible—faster into the unknown. And then he felt water rushing down his back, and his beard began to shrink into nothing; his eyebrows losing its density as the water flowed. He felt a sinking feeling in his gut, as he turned towards Hermione, whose small frame seemed to drown in his mother's already overlarge brocade coat.

Hermione, however was staring intently at Bellatrix, who had hidden as far as she could under the cart's splintery seats; her ghastly black dress flying out behind her as the cart continued to speed forward. She had her grip set on Narcissa's wand, and he could feel her breathing heavily beside him. "B-Bella...Bellatrix?" she stammered, pulling out the wand as Bellatrix shifted from under the seat.

"Almost there, almost there!" the goblin, who they'd all forgotten, said cheerfully.

"Cissy..." the shapeless form of Bellatrix said. "I think I'm...I think I'm sick..."

Draco barked with laughter. "Sick? Since when has _she_ hidden under a seat because she's been _sick_?" he spat. "This is an imposter." He snatched the wand from a protesting Hermione, and jabbed Bellatrix roughly in her back, earning him a resounding shout of "Bloody hell!"

"_RON?!_" Hermione nearly fell out of the cart, if not for Draco's steady hold on her.

"Blimey..." he said, holding on to the cart to lift himself up from under the seat. "Is that you, Hermione?" He noticed Draco sitting next to her. "_What are you doing here, you little_-"

"I'll explain in a moment!" Hermione interjected. "But why are you here?" she asked, at the same moment the cart stopped abruptly, launching them all out, before it zoomed onwards.

"Stupid...cart...I swear..." Draco muttered.

"Gonna tell your father about this, Malfoy?" another voice said.

"_HARRY!_" Hermione shouted, lunging at the space next to Ron, who had begun to pick at Bellatrix's black dress self-consciously.

"Over here." He replied sarcastically, to which Hermione ripped off his Invisibility Cloak, and Harry and another goblin came tumbling out, the former beaming ecstatically, and embracing her joyously. "We thought you had-"

"Okay, SOMEONE EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT THE HELL-" Draco started.

"Bloody hell..." Ron said, receiving a glare from his confused counterpart.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" he yelled, his voice reverberating loudly.

"Now, now, no need to worry!" the goblin said, apparently still as scatterbrained as before. He passed some sort of silver bell to Hermione. "Just ring this before you enter the next chamber!" he warned, waggling his bushy eyebrows up and down oddly.

"What's in the next chamber?" Hermione asked politely, leaning down to address him.

"The dragon." A voice supplied. They all turned around at once, to see the goblin who'd been underneath the Invisibility Cloak with Harry earlier. "This is Griphook, by the way." Ron whispered pointlessly to Hermione.

"Dragon?" Harry insisted. "You didn't tell us about a dragon!" He thought back to his fourth year, facing the rancorous Hungarian Horntail; and grimaced.

"Merlin's arse, I must going effing barmy..." Draco mumbled behind him, running a hand through his hair. 'How the hell are we supposed to go in there with a dragon?' the thought ran fearfully through his, and everyone else's mind.

For, out of the plethora of excitement, a heavy responsibility still lingered over the heads of them all.

* * *

**Author's Note-** So right now, you might be thinking "OMG what just happened..." Understandable. Not gonna lie, I thought that too after proof-reading this...But anyways! Like always please do leave your opinion (good or bad) in the review...section? box? I don't know...Oh, and also, particularly speaking to Isabella India, my Pinterest is purplepeacepen3. :)


	16. Vaults & Escape Routes

"Okay!" Hermione said, her voice still fresh with delight. "So...any ideas?"

"'Mione, there's no need for logic here; whatshisname already gave us the bells." Ron pointed out.

"My name is Grumduk!" the goblin exclaimed, extracting another bell from his waistcoat. "_And what are you doing here near the Black and Malfoy vaults_?!"

"Uh-oh!" Hermione whispered frantically to Ron. "What do we do now?"

"Imperio!" Harry said, flicking his wand casually at Grumduk.

"_Harry_!" Hermione protested, a look of shock on her face.

"Relax..." Ron said. "How else d'you think he'll cooperate?"

Draco smirked. "For once, I agree with you, Weasley."

Ron flashed a look of loathing at him. "Keep your slimy git-face out of this, Malfoy!"

"Git-face?" Draco asked, his smirk widening with amusement.

"Ronald!" Hermione scolded.

"No, it's alright; I suppose I should have known Weasley's vocabulary would always be stuck in 1st year standards..." Draco retorted calmly.

"Draco!" she reprimanded again, pulling on his arm.

"Since when do you call Malfoy, Draco?!" Ron demanded, rounding on Hermione.

She gaped, flabbergasted, at him. "Ronald Weasley, you're such a-"

"ENOUGH!" Harry bellowed, who had been quietly watching the scene. Time was running out. "Look, I know there's a lot going on at the moment..." he started again. "And we haven't seen you in ages, Hermione..." a short nod of acknowledgement to Hermione. "But, we _have_ to at least get through that chamber, and collect the goblet from Bellatrix's vault; and whatever it is you two came to get." He added, looking meaningfully at Draco in particular.

He took the bell from Hermione, and peered into the chamber cautiously. "Alright. It's tethered to whatever that thing is, and we only have 2 bells." He looked to Grumduk for confirmation. "Okay—Hermione, Draco, and Grumduk; you three go in together; and Ron, Griphook, and I will come in after.

"Oh, that's terrible isn't it!" Hermione cried, Grumduk clanking the bell behind her.

"I know; we could be killed!" Draco whispered.

"No, I was talking about the dragon!" she retorted; looking regretfully at it as they passed it.

Despite Hermione's compassionate efforts to converse in the dragon's effort, Ron seemed absolutely terrified as he passed it. It seemed to be an albino; entirely white except for its grayish spikes located on its back and torso. The dragons grappled wildly with the chains holding it down, and burgundy splotches were located all along its neck—signs of prior disobedience.

"This is abuse!" Hermione called out, only to be silenced by an annoyed Draco, who clenched her arm tighter, and nudged Grumduk forward with his foot. "Shut it!"

They soon faced the Black, Lestrange, and Malfoy family vaults after exiting the chamber, Hermione still muttering S.P.E.W.-like things under her breath, and Ron shuddering after his scarce encounter with the dragon.

"What do we do now?" Harry asked Griphook, who promptly forced Grumduk forward, allowing him to stroke the vault's ornate iron wall, so that it seemed to melt beneath his long, knobby fingers.

"Bloody hell..." said Ron at the sight of the glittering jewels and treasures piled high in the Lestranges's vault. "I reckon we can take a bit more than just that cup!" he grabbed a valuable-looking necklace, and gasped as it singed him; dropping it back on the floor. "It burned me!" he cried out.

"Ron, watch out!" Harry shouted, as the necklace began to multiply at his feet, threatening to burn holes through his shoes. Ron immediately jumped back, giving Draco a warning look as he sniggered beside Hermione. "Alright, I see the goblet up there..." Harry said, pointing to a small, golden spot at the top of all the treasures. "Merlin's beard, that was easier than I thought!" Ron gaped at the goblet. "All we have to do is climb up there and get it!" He ran for the vast pile.

Hermione dragged him back by Bellatrix's draping black dress. "No! Ron, don't you realize that everything touched burns you and then multiplies! I suspect the Geminio and Flagrante charms..."

Ron looked appalled. "Well, how are we supposed to get Hufflepuff's cup from all the way up there?"

"Hufflepuff's cup...?" Draco asked, a blank expression on his face. Hermione nudged him.

"The sword." Harry replied, a look of understanding beginning to form. "We can use the sword to grab on to its handles."

"_My_ sword." Griphook interrupted rudely, snatching Gryffindor's sword from Harry. "In case you've forgotten, _we _had a _deal_."

"You'll get it _after_ we get the cup, Griphook!" Harry shot back, grabbing it from him. "Be patient."

"We've been patient for centuries!" demanded Griphook, shaking a fist at Harry, who simply ignored him, and stared at Helga Hufflepuff's cup in the distance. "Ron, you come stand behind me in case we lose the cup. Hermione, Draco; go on to the Malfoy vault; I'm sure we're fine here.

"But Harry!" Hermione protested, only to be dragged along by Draco with one hand, while he had Grumduk in tow with the other.

* * *

"Alright, Grimdik...Grumdok...Grinduk...however the hell your name goes...Open the vault." Draco commanded.

Grumduk, clearly unfazed by the butchering of his name, stroked the door, letting it melt at the touch of his fingers, just like the Lestrange vault.

"Let's make this quick." He addressed Hermione, who was gaping at the spectacular, gleaming stack of Galleons; filling the entire vault. He grabbed handfuls of gold at a time and stuffed them in Hermione's coat, and some in his own pockets, until Hermione smacked his hands away and protested indignantly, "Oh for heaven's sake, just put the gold in my bag!" She thrust her beaded pouch at Draco, who shrugged and stuffed gold in that instead.

After about 5 minutes of Hermione's nagging and Draco's grabbing, they finally left the vault, Hermione's beaded bag slightly heavier than it was before.

At that same moment, Harry and Ron also left the Lestrange's, the former's arms and legs singed terribly. "Where's Griphook?" Hermione asked worriedly.

"Never mind him." Harry said absentmindedly, Ron grinning behind him. "We have to go, quickly! I'm sure Vol-...You-Know-You will find out that we stole the cup eventually."

Hermione looked exasperated. "Have you two even made a plan for how you're going to leave here?!"

Harry's face fell, but Ron replied defiantly, "We were going to leave through the main hall—it's not our faults we didn't know about that _enchanted_ stream or whatever that thing was...I reckon you and Malfoy were going to do the same exact thing."

"Speaking of Malfoy..." Harry said as Hermione opened her mouth to argue.

But Draco wasn't listening, his attention was instead directed towards the dragon behind them all. He watched it closely, fire licking the walls of its chamber, and it's great, spiky tail crashing about. His mind flashed back to that night...the silvery ignition blasting the dementors away...Hermione—limp in his arms...and then he turned to the Trio (and Grumduk, who continued to blabber quietly to himself). "The dragon." He said loudly, breaking their conversation. "We can go on the dragon." His voice was hoarse from the memories.

He heard Ron say faintly, "_Is he out of his blooming mind?!_" He heard Hermione call his name in shock. And he heard Harry call out, "Malfoy, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

But none of them mattered. All he could see was the white dragon in front of him. He didn't even have a bell with him. He didn't know what the hell he was doing. He couldn't think. He just acted on that growing sensation inside of him. That impulse. And when he climbed onto its back, it felt...right. Like he belonged there. He didn't notice Hermione and Harry climb on behind him...He didn't pay attention to Ron, who begrudgingly jumped on its back. He just felt right. And as the wind rushed around them all, soaring tranquilly through the sky...He didn't just feel _right_...Draco Malfoy felt free.

* * *

**Author's Note-** So...what did you think? I kind of feel the end might be a bit cheesy, but eh...we could all use some cheese ;)


	17. Departures & Disputes

"MALFOY!" Harry shouted, grasping desperately to one of the dragon's grey horns.

Draco turned around abruptly, annoyance crossing his face. "POTTER!" he yelled back.

"Where the _bloody_ hell do you think we're going?!" Ron screamed, a hint of fear in his voice. "What d'you think's gonna happen when this thing lands?!" he asked.

"Don't know, Weasley!" Draco said, the wind puncturing his response.

Hermione, who was holding on to Draco's robes for dear life, rolled her eyes behind him.

Suddenly, they all were moved downwards, as the dragon swooped further towards the lake below. "_Bloody hell_!" Ron's muffled voice cried behind them all.

"JUMP!" Harry said, almost pushing Ron off, as he climbed off the dragon's back and plunged into the cerulean waters below.

"I don't think I can-" Hermione started, but her words trailed off into a scream as Draco jumped too, taking Hermione along with him. She was sure she heard him whisper something that sounded like "Prude..." under his breath, but before she could reply, they both crashed into the lake.

Once they were safely on land, they all watched the dragon for a moment, as it drank from the lake's water and stretched out its wings contentedly. And then it was off, water splashing from its spiky tail.

"I'm...freezing..." said Hermione, unbuttoning Narcissa's sopping wet jacket.

"Me too." Harry agreed, looking to Ron who added, "I reckon there's some spare clothes in 'Mione's bag, right?"

She nodded and began to rummage in her beaded bag for clothes, while Ron picked at Bellatrix's dress with a sullen expression on his face.

She handed them each a plain shirt and trousers, and ignored Draco as he grimaced at having to wear another set of Ron's clothes. "Harry's would be too small for you!" Hermione said. Ron shrugged. "I don't want them back, by the way." He said, throwing a nasty look at Draco.

"Well..." Hermione looked at them awkwardly. "I suppose we can get dressed..." She turned around immediately, and dug her own clothes out of her bag. Once she began to pull off her shirt, however, she glanced around her shoulder quickly, only to find Draco doing the exact same thing. She scowled and he smirked.

* * *

"So how long are we staying here?" Ron asked.

Hermione tucked a stray strand of hair out of her face, and answered. "We could probably head back to where Draco and I were staying."

"Since when did things become 'Draco and I'?" Ron demanded.

"Ron, stop being such a prat." Harry said diplomatically. "He saved her life, didn't he?"

Draco, himself, refused to look at either of them, and instead stared desolately at his feet, his head resting on his knees.

"Well, we were just staying at the Shrieking Shack for a few days." Hermione said quickly, as Ron opened his mouth to speak. "I think we should go back there—we'll need to buy some things from Hogsmeade anyways; where were you two?"

"Bill and Fleur's cottage." Said Ron, who seemed slightly subdued. "Luna and Dean were there too."

"Luna?!" Hermione cried. "I hope her father knows she's alright..."

"Yeah, after he sold us out to the Death Eaters..." Harry replied stubbornly.

"So, are we going back to the Shrieking Shack or not?" Draco interrupted irritably, twirling his mother's wand between his fingers.

"I think that's actually a good idea, Malfoy." Harry said, a sudden look of remembrance on his face. "I think the next one might be in Hogwarts." He motioned to Hufflepuff's cup. "And the-"

"Basilisk fangs..." Hermione finished. "So it's settled?" She nudged Ron. "Fine..." he muttered.

"Hold on to me." Draco told her, taking her hand gently.

"Harry, take my hand." Hermione said.

"Ron-" Harry started.

Ron took Draco's arm, mimicking, "_Hold on to me_" under his breath.

And then, with a flash of blue, and yellow and white streaks whirring around them, they all came to a halt in the Shrieking Shack. Ron instantly snatched his hand away from Draco, and went to stand next to Harry, who had collapsed onto the bed.

"Harry? Harry? Harry, mate are you okay?" Ron asked, shaking him violently.

"Harry, don't let him in!" Hermione cried.

"What's wrong with Potter?" Draco asked indifferently, as Harry began muttering as though in a trance, and he thrashed upon the bed.

They both ignored him, and instead stood over Harry worriedly, as they could decipher the words, "He knows" from Harry's jumble of speech. Suddenly, he shot up, sweating terribly, and rubbing his neck. "He knows." Harry confirmed, to the amusement of Draco, who bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from sniggering. "He knows that we took the Horcrux from the Lestrange vault, and he's angry. He wants to keep the snake close to him—Nagini."

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked doubtfully, only to be shushed by Ron.

"Yeah, I saw him Apparate out with it. The snake, it must be the other Horcrux..."

"And the next Horcrux must be from Ravenclaw if it's located at Hogwarts!" Hermione concluded. "The thing is...we don't know how to get in..."

"We can figure that out later..." Ron complained. "Right now, I'm starving!"

"Ron, we're looking for Horcruxes, and the first thing you can think about is _eating_?" Hermione reproached.

"Okay, is _someone_ going to tell me what a Horcrux is?" Draco demanded loudly.

"Not now, Draco." Hermione answered.

Ron, who looked smug, added, "Shouldn't you be going back to your mommy by now?"

"Ron!" Hermione shouted, a frightened look on her face.

Draco, himself, had already pulled out his wand, and his eyes glinted murderously. "I would say you should go back to yours, but I'm sure your own mother's happy another one of her breed has left that small nest she calls a house." He said quietly.

"You take that back!" Ron yelled, drawing out his own wand, and pointing it fervently at him. "You're just a Death Eater anyway!"

"_Bombarda!_" Draco shouted furiously, blasting Ron backwards as the tip of his wand exploded in flames. He ran out of the shack, slamming the door behind him.

"Ron!" Harry exclaimed, extinguishing the flames with his own wand, and propping Ron up against the bed. "Hermione—help me put him-" he started.

"No." she said flatly. "He shouldn't have been such a prick!" there was despair mixed with the anger in her voice by then, and she ran out the door, calling Draco's name.

"Well that was an interesting turn of events." Said Harry.

* * *

**Author's Note- **Haha, I agree with Harry on that one! I promise you though, the next chapter will have some Dramione happenings...if that's a thing. Is that a thing? I think it's a thing. I mean, I'm sure it _could_ be a thing. Do you think it would be a cool thing? *coughs* Um, yeah, enough talk about things. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and remember to review if you liked it or have suggestions! I love hearing from you guys! (Trust me, if you've reviewed, I've already read your review, stalked your account, and most likely commented on stories you've written.) Is that creepy? Sorry...


	18. Lost Identities

Hermione looked outside around the shack, half expecting Draco to be sitting on the steps, waiting for her to come out and apologize; and everything would be okay again. She half expected Draco to wrap her in his arms, and say he's never leaving her. That he'll be there...always. But Draco Malfoy was unpredictable. And that frightened her.

She looked up at the sky above her, as if hoping for a solution. As if the cottony white clouds in the robin egg's blue sky would bring Draco back. As if they had before.

But she knew, deep down, that none of that would ever be possible. After all she was Hermione Granger. Brightest witch of her age. She wasn't going to just sit around and wait for some guy to come around. Especially not the same guy who's been tormenting her for years. For Merlin's sake, she at least had some dignity! No, she was going to find him herself. And that was a guarantee.

'Where could he be?' she thought to herself, as she walked aimlessly around Hogsmeade. Hardly anyone was on the streets...not since the war started. It came almost as a shock to Hermione, Hogsmeade was almost always bustling with activity. But everything was changing. Change was inevitable. And one should always foresee the inevitable. Unfortunately, Hermione didn't fancy much prophesying. She was a straightforward girl—direct, honest, and open. Or at least she tried to be.

Yet, she found herself walking along an unknown road, no longer looking for Draco, but rather losing herself in her thoughts. It was getting dark, and she wished she'd brought a wand with her. Draco most likely had his mother's. 'Why am I becoming so reckless?' she admonished herself.

She began to walk at a faster pace, looking around every few seconds. She was a wandless woman. What else could go wrong?

And then she noticed a small shop, littered with cobwebs and strange objects peeking out the windows. Hermione stopped for a moment to peer inside. What was this place? She hadn't remembered coming here with Ron and Harry...this seemed to be much darker than Weasley's Wizard Wheezes or The Three Broomsticks...almost like the Knockturn Alley of Hogsmeade...

She turned quickly on her heel, preparing to Disapparate back to the Shrieking Shack. Then suddenly, she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Hermione." She turned back around, feeling an instant jolt of elation.

"Draco, you came back." She said.

He smirked. "I always have, haven't I?"

"I suppose so."

"Well, you've got to forgive me." He said, an almost smug look on his face.

She walked up to him. "And what makes you think I will?"

He grinned. "This." He pulled her in for a kiss, pushing her up against the brick wall.

"I love you, Hermione." He said, caressing the words against her lips.

She leaned against him, tangling her fingers in his hair. She didn't know what to say. Draco Malfoy? Love...her?

He pulled away, smiling. "Run away with me." He said, his voice gentle.

She stared in shock. "Draco...I don't think I can just..."

He kissed her again, his lips dueling hers in a matter of love and war.

"Don't you love me?" He seemed desperate...angry almost.

"Draco...I..." His lips found her neck, and he kissed his way up to her chin, and trailed them back down again. She could feel him smirking against her skin as she sighed with longing.

"Run away with me." He said again, his voice laced with an ultimatum unbeknownst to her. "Will you?"

She forced a smile. "Look, Draco...I don't think I can...Harry...the war..."

He grabbed her waist, and laid his forehead against hers affectionately, tracing circles on her back with his fingers. "It'll just be...us..."

"Don't you want me?" he teased. "Don't you want...us?"

She nodded feverishly as Draco joined their lips once again; she was beginning to lose self-control.

"Go with me..." he whispered against her lips.

She shuddered, feeling almost millions of senses at once. His touch was controlling, domineering. "I can't..." she murmured.

"What?" he asked, pretending not to hear.

She gulped. "I said, I can't!" Hermione pulled away, wrapping her arms around herself guiltily.

She felt strong hands pull her back roughly by the wrists. "Come on, Hermione!" he protested. "I want to be with you. We could go to the Manor..."

She felt a growing feeling in her stomach; an instinct of repentance. "No." she said firmly, pushing him away again.

"_You filthy little Mudblood!_" he yelled, slamming her against the wall. "I said-"

"No!" Hermione said, trying her hardest to push him off. "Please! Don't!" she cried, as his fist collided with her cheek, and she crumpled to the ground. Plans of action raced through her mind all at once. 'Harry...Ron...anyone...'

Tears were now streaming down her face, and she attempted to grab on to...anything...everything...trying her hardest to avoid his aimed kicks. But worst of all...she realized, Draco wasn't really who she thought he was...his rebuilt identity had just crumbled right in front of her, and she had no way to save herself. She could do a bit of wandless magic, but her focus wasn't enough...hardly anything cornered up against the wall. 'Help...anyone...what should I do...'

"STUPEFY!" a voice shouted behind her, the store door banging open. Draco fell at once, his mouth open in an 'O' before her eyes. She looked up at once to thank her rescuer, but...it couldn't be...She got up quickly and moved away from him. "Draco?" she asked tentatively.

"Hermione!" he shouted, gathering her in his arms. "Are you all right?"

She pushed him away roughly. "Get...get away from me...whoever you are..."

He looked at Hermione in shock. "Hermione! It's me! Rookwood..." he gasped. "He had Polyjuice Potion..."

She was unsure...she couldn't know if this was the real Draco Malfoy...yet she couldn't leave the real Draco, if it were true...

"I can produce a Patronus." He stated clearly, looking down at his feet as he spoke.

"Show me." She responded instantly, expecting him to look surprised, say he didn't have his wand at the ready...but he looked up suddenly, meeting her eyes, and he held his gaze as he pulled out a wand. She backed away instantly, preparing to Apparate out, if he tried anything else.

"_Expecto Patronum!_" he yelled, a wispy white smoke coming from the tip of his wand. "_EXPECTO PATRONUM!_" Relief washed over his face as the dragon appeared once again, this time circling around Hermione and breathing its silvery fire up towards the darkening sky.

"Draco." She said shakily, tears forming in her eyes; running to him. He wrapped his arms around her, breathing heavily as the dragon faded from sight. "I'll never hurt you." He said passively, pulling her closer.

"I'll never hurt you—I'm not like my father...and..." his voice broke. "I want you to feel safe with me, Hermione."

She rested his head on his shoulder. "What are we?" she asked suddenly, looking up at him.

He smirked, a sight she's grown used to seeing. He hugged her to him tighter. "We are—what we make of us."

* * *

**Author's Note-** So how was the thing? Please do tell me if the thing pleased you, or if the thing wasn't enough. ;) But seriously, thank you for following their adventures with me, and giving your feedback. I can't tell you how much it means to me...the only thing missing is my long overdue Hogwart's letter...*shemurr* lol


	19. Truces & Arguments

Hermione stopped at door to the shack, looking nervously around her shoulder. Draco stood awkwardly behind her, as if he didn't want to return. They could hear slightly muffled voices from within.

"They ought to cast the Muffliato charm if they don't want anyone _else_ to hear!" Hermione huffed.

"Shhhhhhhh!" Draco said impatiently, nudging her. He pulled her away from the door by the arm, and peered through the window. "Merlin, they're so careless..." she muttered.

Once again, he shushed her, wrapping his hand around her waist, and pulling her closer again. "Be quiet!" he hissed. He leaned against the window, flinching a bit as she leaned her head against his shoulder to see.

"Harry, I can't believe that _prat_ has to come with us!" came Ron's voice. Draco smirked from behind the glass.

They could hear Harry sigh in resignation, and see his figure walk in front of the window, blocking their view a bit. "Listen, Ron. I'm not exactly sure why he's here...or what happened between him and Hermione, but he could be useful!" he answered practically.

Ron finally came into view. "_Useful_!" he shouted. "All Malfoy's ever done is cause trouble! I don't see how Hermione can stand him! He called her a Mudblood in our 2nd year! He broke up the DA! _Not to mention, he's_-"

"Enough!" Harry yelled back. Hermione looked behind her shoulder again. "I was there in 6th year, when he tried to kill Dumbledore-"

"Exactly!" Ron broke in.

Harry sighed exasperatedly. "_No_! He _tried_ to, but he couldn't! He couldn't kill him. He never did. Listen, I know he's done some things in the past...and I don't like him much either..."

Draco snorted, and Hermione stepped on his foot. "But, this is different. Right now, we're in the middle of a war, and there's more important things than who's got the best broom, and who's won house cup. Right now, it's a matter of good and bad; light and dark."

Ron opened his mouth to protest, but Harry continued louder. "But, the world isn't split into light and dark, Ron. We've all got both inside of us. What matters is the side we choose to _act_ on." He put his head in his hands for a moment, and the shack remained quiet.

"Maybe Malfoy's finally decided to act on the light." He finished, looking up at Ron.

"That's not our problem to fix!" Ron argued weakly.

Harry nodded. "But the least we can do, is give him the benefit of the doubt. When Hermione and Malfoy come back, you're going to apologize, alright?"

"Urgh..." Ron said, sitting down on Hermione's bed. "Do I really have-"

"Yes." Harry interrupted briskly. "You don't have to be friends, you don't have to like each other. _Just. Be. Civil._" He paused. "Is that a deal?"

"Do I even have a choice...?" Ron complained.

"No." said Harry, flatly.

"Well, I'm not being civil unless _he's_ going to be civil..."

"You know what?" Harry asked rhetorically. "I'm sure Hermione's had that same conversation with Draco already, anyways. So sod off!" Silence followed his words.

At that, Draco turned to Hermione, who had loosened her grip on him, and smirked. "Oh, I suppose you didn't." he said triumphantly. Hermione glared at him. "You'd better." Draco chuckled darkly. "And what makes you think I will?"

She raised her eyebrow. "Then we'll leave you to the Death Eaters. They're probably looking for you, anyways. In fact, we shouldn't be out here in the middle of Hogsmeade—someone could see us!"

Draco folded his arm across his chest. "I've already obliviated Rookwood, nothing's going to-"

"Just do it!" Hermione said exasperatedly, looking behind herself for about the millionth time. Without waiting for an answer, she strode over to the door, and grabbed Draco's arm. "Alright, then..." she said. "Now, when we go in-"

"Psh." Said Draco, obviously undaunted. He slammed the door open with one swift movement, smirking as Ron and Harry instantly turned around, with their wands at the ready.

"Oh, er...Malfoy!" Harry said. "How...Where did you...?"

As soon as Draco opened his mouth to speak, however, Hermione looked around the shack, shrieking loudly, and closing back the door. "Honestly, you two! You could have at least locked the door!"

Harry and Ron exchanged guilty looks. "Well, we...uh...we had our wands!" Ron waved his wand about as if it were the solution to all problems.

"That wouldn't be too much of a help if a few Death Eaters turned up! That wouldn't help any!" she raged on.

"Hermione, we were-" Harry started.

"No! We'll have to change grounds immediately! Someone's probably already found us-"

"No one's found us, 'Mione..." Ron interrupted.

"But we'll do the charms!" Harry added quickly, as Hermione turned furiously to Ron.

"I'll do it." She said sharply, holding out her hand to Draco.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked innocently.

"You know _full well_ that I was-"

"Okay!" Draco cut in, handing his mother's wand, once again, to Hermione. And with one last, fleeting look, Hermione left the shack, already muttering incantations under her breath.

He looked back to Harry and Ron, the latter pointedly refusing to meet his eye. "It's funny, because she actually already charmed the place, before we left...I suppose she's forgotten...except for the door bit..." Draco said, in an attempt to strike up a conversation.

Ron looked up at last. "Yeah. 'Spose so..." he answered, obviously trying to remain civil.

"So..." Said Harry. "How exactly did you two end up here?" he asked curiously.

"Well, Potter-" he started sardonically, cutting himself off as he remembered Hermione's words, earlier. He sighed. "To make things quick, we Apparated out of the Manor, actually. And then we ended up here...And then we-"

"Went to the Malfoy vault in Gringotts." Harry finished, to the annoyance of Draco, who bit the inside of his cheek tolerantly.

"Precisely..." He said, a trace of sarcasm still intact in his voice.

Ron, who had noticed the sarcasm, spoke up finally. "So what did you go to Gringotts to get?"

Draco sniggered. "Unfortunately for you, Weasley, Gringotts is where you store your money...something I'm sure you don't have..."

"OI!" Ron shouted, pulling out his wand.

Draco reached into his pockets, and then froze as he realized Hermione had the wand.

"I thought so, ferret." He said, his wand still pointed at Draco.

"Ron, let him go. He's not worth it." Said Harry, who looked almost disappointed.

Draco sighed. "Look, Weasley. I don't want to be here with you just as much as you hate being here with me."

Ron opened his mouth to retort, but Draco continued calmly. "So, for Hermione's sake. I suggest we...er...act civil..."

"Do you hear this prat?" Ron whispered to Harry, who ignored him.

"Alright, then." He said. "I suppose we can call this a truce."

He held out a hand, which Draco shook, and then looked expectantly at Ron.

"Wait, wait, wait." He said suspiciously. "I'm only going to be civil if _he'll_ be civil."

Draco smirked. "Isn't that what I just said, Weasel...ly?" he snapped.

"This one here!" Ron said loudly. "Acts like I'm deaf!"

"I'm sure that's why you're talking so loud, Weasel Bee!" Draco retorted.

"Yeah, Harry. I'm _definitely_ going to make a truce with _Malfoy_." Said Ron.

"Enough!" Harry shouted. He seemed tired of being the diplomat in their arguments. "Malfoy, stop antagonizing Ron, Ron stop taking everything Malfoy says seriously! _We already know he's a git_." He whispered to Ron shrewdly.

"Shake hands!" he said, nudging Ron forward.

Ron stuck out his hand awkwardly, looking Draco in the eye defiantly.

Draco, on the other hand, looked at Ron's fingers as though they were something disgusting stuck to the bottom of his cauldron. However, he eventually grew tired of Harry's consistent glaring, and shook Ron's hand reluctantly.

At this moment, Hermione walked back in, Narcissa's wand still glowing a bit in her grasp.

"Oh! I knew you'd come around!" she cried excitedly.

"What?" Ron yelled.

"No!" Draco shouted.

Off in the corner, Harry lounged casually on the bed, smirking at them both.

"Well, I was thinking for a moment which pair of us should head off to the shops to get some food, earlier!" Hermione plowed on. "And I think you two should definitely go together! We'll need two to keep the shack safe, anyways. So Harry and I, should stay behind, and you should go together!"

Ron and Draco looked at each other with horror.

"Yeah, I reckon that'll do." Harry piped up, grinning as he earned a glare from Ron. "I think you'll need time to..." Draco threw him a look that said clearly, "Potter, I'm warning you...".

"Bond." He finished triumphantly.

"You're right, Harry!" Hermione agreed. "So it's settled. You can go tomorrow morning, while Harry and I figure out a way to get into Hogwarts. We'll need all the energy we can get, so get to bed!"

"We only have three beds, Hermione!" Ron pointed out.

Draco smirked. "I don't have a problem with sharing." He looked to Hermione, who folded her arms across her chest.

"No!" Ron shouted instantly. As though he could read Ron's mind, Harry conjured another bed in a split second. "There we go." He said pleasantly.

"Sorry, Malfoy." Ron started. "We banished the other bed after you left." He stalked over to the bed farthest from Draco, and climbed in. And before he could get another answer from Draco or lecture from Hermione, he pulled out his Deluminator from his trouser pocket, and clicked it, washing them all in darkness.

Draco, who had fumbled into his own bed, scowled at Ron as best as he could. "Goodnight, _Weasley_." He managed.

Ron shifted from under his covers and sat up. "G'nite, _Malfoy_."

* * *

**Author's Note- **Hello! I'm sorry for not posting any updates in a couple days, but I haven't been feeling well recently, and wasn't up to making any new chapters. :( However, I'm definitely better now, so I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Thank you all for reading, bye! 3


	20. Rise & Shine, Weasley!

Draco woke up early that morning, after a series of disturbing dreams involving a cauldron and centaurs from the Forbidden Forest. He woke up panting slightly, looking frantically around the shack as if he could hear the rapid footsteps of the centaurs nearing his bed. His erratic breathing slowed in relief, and he laid back in bed, clasping his hands over his head. 'Damn it...me and that Weasel are going to have to go _shopping_.' He groaned. 'What the hell did I get myself into...'

He got up quietly out of bed, and surveyed the sleeping form of Ronald Weasley from across the room. He smirked, as he noticed that the redhead was apparently suffering through some sort of nightmare; as he was muttering "Spiders...I don't want to...spiders...don't make me...skate..." in his sleep.

He looked over to Harry, whose right leg was draped over the bed post, and left arm dangling off the side of the bed. 'Nice posing, Potter...' he thought to himself, holding back a laugh as Harry began to snore softly.

He then crept over to Hermione's bedside. Her wild, frizzy, brown hair strewn across her pillow, Hermione Granger seemed to be in a deep sleep. He peered closer, and noticed a large chunk of her hair located directly on top of her eye. She flinched every two seconds; most likely because it irritated her. He grinned to himself. 'Granger and her bushy hair...'

Finally, after a few seconds of watching her face twitch, he reached his hand forward, and gently pushed the hair off her face. He felt satisfied for a moment, as her breathing seemed to become less ragged, and her facial expression stayed dormant for a while.

Suddenly, the eye opened, and looked right at him. And then the formerly sleeping Hermione turned over, and gazed at him. "What exactly did you think you were doing?"

Draco ran a hand through his platinum blond hair uncomfortably. "Er...You had something in your eye..." he muttered.

She yawned. "Something in my eye? So you felt the need to push my hair off my face?"

He nodded. "I thought you were sleeping."

She sat up, and rubbed her eyes tiredly. "I've been awake for ages, Draco, I just didn't want to wake any of you up."

"Interesting..." he said, shifting from foot to foot. "So what now?"

She studied him closely. "What do you mean, what now?"

He smirked. "So are we going back to sleep...staying up to talk...?"

She blushed, something that didn't go by unnoticed. "Of course we're going back to sleep."

"Why are we even having this conversation?"

"Why don't you ask yourself? You're the one that woke me-"

"You said you've been _awake for ages_." He replied smugly.

She shrugged. "I suppose I may have drifted off a bit." She pushed the covers off her legs, and stretched them out steadily. "What time is it?" she asked abruptly.

"How should I know?" Draco countered lazily.

She rolled her eyes. "Because I see your watch peeking through your jumper sleeve." She said matter-of-factly.

He shrugged and pulled up the sleeve of his sweater, peering at the watch. "About a quarter-past-nine." He said.

Hermione gasped. "We should have woken up ages ago!" she shrieked. "HARRY! RON!"

Draco gaped at her. "We have plenty of time to-"

"HARRY! RON! WAKE UP!" At this, she bounded up, and shook Harry and Ron awake in their respective beds. "We have to go into Hogsmeade!"

"Uhhh...er...mio...kneeeee...what...izzit..." Ron groaned, as he sat up warily.

Harry, however jolted up instantly, looking around as though he were being attacked. "What's going on?" he demanded.

"We have to go to Hogsmeade!" she repeated.

"Ughhhhhhhhhhh..." Ron complained. "I have to go with stupid Malfoy?"

"Ron..." Hermione said warningly.

"No, it's okay, Weasley." Said Draco. "I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun." He smiled convincingly at Hermione, who smiled back, and kissed him on the cheek.

"Bloody hell!" Ron shouted crossly.

"Are you two...?" Harry asked, adjusting his glasses on the crook of his nose.

Hermione blushed furiously, and Draco simply smirked—as usual.

"No, of course not!" she exclaimed, distancing herself from him. "I've kissed you on the cheek plenty of times, haven't I, Harry?"

"Yeah, but that was different!" Ron argued. "You just kissed that_ git_!"

At this point, Draco chose to speak up. "For Salazar's sake, Weasley, I didn't know you liked Granger."

"No I bloody don't! But someone could have at least forewarned me that my best mate, and my worst enemy are gonna be snogging and going on in my presence!" Ron shouted.

"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione's voice rang out. "There's nothing going on between Draco and I, and even if there was, it wouldn't be any of your damn business!" she folded her arms over her chest angrily.

"There isn't?" Draco asked insufferably, raising his eyebrow.

Harry finally climbed out of bed, and stretched his legs. "Alright, this is the point in the argument, where I tell you two to piss off?"

Ron opened and closed his mouth, the words failing him. "But, Harry!"

"No, buts." Hermione cut in. "In fact, get dressed; both of you. You'll need to go into Hogsmeade quite soon."

"But, Hermione..." Ron whined.

"You heard her, Weasley." Draco commented, sneering at Ron from behind Hermione's back.

Harry pretended not to see the obscene hand gesture Ron responded back with.

* * *

"Argh, 'Mione, what did you do to me?!" Ron cried, clutching at his face, which had sprouted dirty blond hair, well...everywhere. So much so, that he almost began to resemble Hagrid.

She ignored him. "Draco, I think it'd be okay if you use the same-"

"No!" Draco exclaimed. Hermione seemed _much_ too beard-happy at the moment.

"Just...make my nose bigger and my lips smaller or something. And give me red hair, I suppose."

Hermione looked taken aback. "Well...alright then."

"Yeah, I think today I'm channeling the Weasleys." He smirked.

Ron grimaced, clenching his teeth. "Shall we?" he motioned to Hermione.

"Wait! Here's the money." She rummaged in her bag to pull out some galleons.

"Why can't we just take the whole bag?" Draco asked impatiently.

Hermione sighed. "Wouldn't it look a bit odd if two grown men were walking along the streets with their arms stuck all the way into a purple beaded bag?"

Ron shrugged. "Here, let's just stuff our pockets."

"Hey." Said Harry, who had been twiddling his thumbs quietly on his bed.

"What is it?" Ron asked hopefully.

"Bring us back some Acid Pops and Frizzing Whizbees, will you?"

Hermione shot Harry a reproachful look. "You absolutely _will not_! Buy actual food, if you please, and _then_ sweets _only_ if you have anything left over."

Ron and Harry groaned. "Hermione..."

"Oh, stop feeling sorry for yourselves!" She said sharply. "Draco, Ron—time to go."

"Come on, Granger, you can't be-"

"Out!" At this, she grabbed them both by their shirt collars, opened the door, and thrust them out; not bothering to answer either of them.

"Well, that may have not been the best decision..." she said out loud to herself.

"What, sending Malfoy and Ron on a trip together?" Harry asked.

Hermione looked at him bracingly, as though she'd forgotten he was there. "Maybe..." She laughed.

"And you _just now_ realize that, Hermione? Merlin, I thought you were the brightest witch of your age!" He chuckled.

"Suppose you're right..." She laughed harder, shutting the shack's door.

"So what are we going to do now?" Harry inquired.

"Are you up to a game of Exploding Snap?" she rummaged in her bag, and pulled out a few cards.

He peered at her curiously. "Er...sure? You have Exploding Snap in there?"

"Harry, what don't I have in there?" she asked seriously, shaking the bag for emphasis.

"Reckon you're right..." Harry said, grinning. "Shuffle, please."

* * *

**Author's Note-** Mwahahahahaha! So you thought you'd get some quality Ron/Draco banter here? Wrong! What would that be anyways, Raco? Don? Ronco? Haha, no I actually planned on this chapter being their 'shopping trip', but then halfway in I realized they hadn't even left the shack yet. ;) Lol, nonetheless, I hope you still enjoyed this chapter! I'll see you soon, my friends. (Which implies that you actually know what I look like, _and_ that I personally know everyone reading this chapter...so basically I just lied...I'm going to shut up now...) Bye!


	21. Hogsmeade

"Where did Granger say we have to go again?" Draco complained, ruffling his now, ginger, hair with one hand.

Ron groaned. "Malfoy, how the bloody hell would I know?" He looked ahead of them distastefully. "All she said was 'no sweets'."

"Whatever, Weasley."

"Well, Hogsmeade isn't _exactly _the best place for grocer's shops if you ask me!" he shot back.

"Whatever, Weasley." Draco smirked.

"Okay, how about I go to the Three Broomsticks, and you bugger off!"

Draco looked thoughtful for a moment, and then responded with a slow sneer. "We're going to Comestus' Brasserie."

"What's that?" Ron asked with confusion.

However, Draco decidedly ignored him, and instead began to walk down into the center of the village, where all the shops remained. Several people were already out, most of them gravitating toward Honeydukes Sweetshop. Ron's stomach groaned with longing. "Where are you going?!" he shouted.

Draco turned once, with a victorious look on his face. Before he could get questioned further, he went back around, and turned left.

"That _bloody_ git!" Ron swore to himself, following him grudgingly. "Who does he think he his?"

He had a mindset to shake that prat until the smirk wipes off his face. He traveled a bit behind him, until they reached a tiny brick building, covered almost entirely with green moss.

He hid quickly behind it as Draco looked over his shoulder a couple times, but he eventually walked through the door.

'I've never been here before...' Ron thought. After a few moments he entered, himself, and his jaw dropped open. It was incredibly large and opulent on the inside, despite its shabby exterior, and the walls offered a refreshing shade of green. There were several tables littered behind the counter, where he could see Draco ordering just a few feet away. 'This is like 'Mione's bag, except in a Hogsmeade shop!'

Suddenly, Draco whirled around and stared right at him, walking towards him irritably. 'The hell...' Ron backed away, startled.

"Give me that shit." He said, snatching Hermione's bag from him.

"Bitch, please!" Ron snarled back. "You didn't even bloody tell me what you're getting."

"Whatever, Weasley." Draco responded, for about the millionth time, and stalked over to the counter smugly.

'I'm going to bloody strangle him, if-'

"Hello, how are you doing today?" The voice of a woman said behind him.

He turned around instantly, and resisted the urge to groan with annoyance. "Fine, thanks."

"Would you like to order-?" Her voice dripped with faux delight, and she sounded as though someone spiked her tea with too much sugar. "No, thanks." Ron replied shortly, and he exited that restaurant as quickly as he could. 'I was _suffocating_ in there!'

He tapped his foot impatiently, and waited for Draco to come out...practically empty-handedly. "Where the bloody hell is all our-" He started indignantly.

"In her bag, Weasley, settle down. We all know you eat away your problems." He stuffed Hermione's beaded bag in her pocket, and sniggered.

Ron had had enough. "OI!" He shouted, launching himself at Draco and sending him tumbling—hard, down to the ground.

"Get your filthy hands off of me!" Draco protested, rolling over, so that he was on top of Ron, who continued to pummel him furiously, with his two fists. He tugged at his dirty-blond beard, and Ron yelped in pain. "You prat!"

"Excuse me!" Ron recognized the syrupy sweet voice from only minutes earlier.

Draco immediately glanced up at the woman in shock. Ron took the opportunity to push him off, roughly, and he landed on the ground once more. He got up to his feet shakily. "We'll er...we..." Ron started.

"We tend to fight a lot; my apologizes. Now, we'll be going!" Draco said briskly, ignoring the skeptical look on the woman's face, and grabbing Ron's arm.

"Nice work, Weasley." He muttered under his breath, pushing him along.

"I can't believe I have to live with such an idiot!" Ron panted, his face reddening.

"Well, I'm sorry to say, but Granger and I were perfectly fine without you and...what do they call him now? The Chosen One? The-Boy-Who-Saves-All-Our-Arses, is that it?" Draco sneered.

"Don't you dare talk about Harry like that!" Ron fumed. "And in case you hadn't noticed, Hermione's only tolerated _you_ because she wanted to find _us!_" he shoved Draco away, and began to walk towards The Three Broomsticks.

Draco stood there, stunned. He watched Ron slam open the door and rush inside, and he felt resentment fuel up inside of him. He clenched his fists, and decidedly refused to follow him in. 'I've always hated that place.' He told himself resolutely, walking stiffly in the opposite direction, to a place that seemed even smaller than the Shrieking Shack.

"The Hogs Head", the sign read, which looked tattered and as though it hung from the shop by a magical thread.

'It's better than being with _that_ Weasel...' he contemplated, entering the pub. Surprise, surprise—that dirty, little place was empty. He sat down on one of the wooden chairs anyway, and rested his head on his hands, which he had propped up on his table. It seemed...almost..._comfortable_ here. He wondered if anyone from Hogwarts came here. Hogwarts...he never missed a place he'd hated more in his entire life. He imagined how all the students would be lined up at their tables in the Great Hall, feasting on the endless amounts of food, and chattering excitedly with their fellow Housemates. How he _ached_ to be back at Hogwarts. He could just-

"What part of _closed_ did you not understand, sir?" A gruff voice said behind him.

Draco turned around, and looked up guiltily at the pub's owner. And then he looked back again. Into his bright, piercing blue eyes. The same ones that almost...twinkled sadly on the Astronomy Tower. The ones that were usually partially obscured by silver, half-moon spectacles. The bright, piercing blue eyes of-

"_Dumbledore?_"

* * *

**Author's Note-** Hi. I can't think of anything snarky to say, so...bye!...Oh, wait, wait! I forgot to tell you, the "Give me that shit!" & "Bitch, please..." parts are from this gif that I so dearly love. That part's much funnier if you've seen it. ;) Here's the link:

24. media. tumblr 7da595433c6359a6090fd3cfc766dba3/ tumblr_mq1a4yN6sF1sodq45o1_500. gif

Just remove the spaces :)


	22. The Death of Draco Malfoy

The man didn't answer. He just simply stared at him; as though he couldn't fathom Draco's question. He sighed.

Draco held his gaze with him. He felt as though the man could see right through him, could read his thoughts, feast on his soul. They were penetrating, his eyes, yet he couldn't look away. After that night...he'd succeeded in repressing the memories as far back in his mind as he could. He remembered clearly how Dumbledore's eyes met his...how he could almost see the reflection of his innocence in the depths of blue. Understanding.

That night, he lost his innocence. He never killed Dumbledore, yet, the state of affairs rested only with his role of deception. But, worst of all, he saw pity. He knew Dumbledore pitied him the moment he stepped foot on the Astronomy Tower. He hated it. Hated the way he never had the courage to break free from the chains that restrained him to the sins he dared not commit. Hated how he couldn't carry out the deed that so bonded him to the life he was destined for. And, most of all...he hated that Albus Dumbledore knew these things. The knowledge was apparent in those opalescent blue eyes.

Draco was ripped from his reverie, once the man in question demanded, "Who are you, and why are you still here?"

He didn't answer for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Who are _you_?" he countered cockily.

The man chuckled darkly. "Well, you're an arrogant bloke, aren't you? I'm the owner of this pub." He grabbed a bottle of firewhisky from the counter beside him, and took a swig. "Aberforth Dumbledore. Care to tell me who you are?"

"Dra-...er...Neville. Neville Longbottom..." Draco lied easily, scratching his neck profusely to avoid eye contact.

"No, you aren't." Aberforth replied calmly. "I _know_ Neville Longbottom. Very well if you'll ask me...Now tell me who you are, before I _kick you out of my tavern_."

Draco froze. 'We never discussed this before we left the shack...what am I supposed to do...'

He decided to stall. "So, are you Dumbledore's brother?...Albus Dumbledore..." he added quickly, as Aberforth's expression began to darken.

"Right I am." He said briskly. "Now you have 10 seconds to either tell me who you are, or get banned from here for the rest of your life."

'What do I do now?'

Unfazed, Aberforth began to count. "10..."

'And how does he know Neville...'

"9..."

'Should I just tell him who I really am?'

"8..."

'He _is _Dumbledore's brother after all...'

"7..."

'But if he knows that I was responsible...'

"6..."

'Maybe I should trust him...he seems like a member of the Order...he wouldn't tell any Death Eaters, would he?'

"5..."

'I think I should just tell him...'

"4..."

'But I don't look like myself...What's the spell again...?'

"3..."

'Er...Ostando...Ostinde...Ostende...'

"2..."

"Draco!" he shouted.

Aberforth looked at him in astonishment, his bushy grey eyebrows meeting his forehead. "What, sir?"

"My name is Draco. Draco Malfoy." He cleared his throat nervously, and stood up.

"Draco? Draco Malfoy, you say? You're lying. Draco Malfoy is dead." He took another swig of firewhisky, and chortled.

Draco gripped the arm of his chair tightly. 'What is this old codger talking about?'

"I...I am?"

"Yes, _he _is. You're not a very smart fellow, are you..."

"I'm not lying!

"Well, then, _Mr. Malfoy_, I'm sure even if you _weren't_ dead, you would have seen the papers going 'round with your face on it."

'What the hell...' Draco retrieved the wand from his pocket, and muttered, "_Ostende Identitatem_." This time, he could hardly feel the changes, but he instantly knew he'd done the incantation right, judging by the shocked expression on Aberforth's paling face.

* * *

"Who's this bloke on the front page?" Ron Weasley spit out, between mouthfuls of fudge—provided by his childhood crush, Madam Rosmerta. He picked up the Daily Prophet, and winced as a bit of chocolate smeared onto the paper. An almost greyish-tinged, pale boy with blond hair winked and smirked in the image. Ron grimaced. 'No...it can't be...'

"Draco Malfoy, haven't you heard?" she replied, whisking the paper away, and setting down another butterbeer in front of him.

He blinked. "Er..."

She smoothed her apron. "He died several days ago, you know."

Ron choked on his butterbeer, spilling the frothy drink all over his front. "Excuse me?"

"Scourgify." Rosmerta said casually, flicking her wand. "Yes, he apparently attempted to murder Harry Potter's best friend, Hermione Granger." She lowered her voice, and leaned in. "They're on the run, you know...with this other Weasley boy...what was his name again?" Straightening up, she ticked names off with her finger. "Raymond, is it? Raymond...no, not Raymond..."

He groaned instinctively. ''Spose Hermione was right...how do they...and why...'

"Roger? Roger Weasley?...Rowland...Robert..."

"Bloody he-"

"Rupert! Rupert Weasley, I believe that may be it..."

Ron got up from his seat, and smiled apologetically. "Listen, I have to go. I don't know how much all this is..." He gestured to his table, laden with Honeydukes sweets and butterbeer bottles, and then reached deeply into Hermione's bag. "Here you are!" He dumped a handful of galleons onto the table, and grinned.

"I have to go!"

Dashing out the door, he flashed a quick wave behind him, leaving an open-mouthed Madam Rosmerta to pick up galleons off the floor.

* * *

**Author's Note- **Hi. *looks guilty* I'm fairly aware that I've missed a day, but actually if your time-zone is different then maybe not...ANYWAYS. I haven't gotten any reviews since about Chapter 19-20, so hopefully none of you noticed. :D Ummm...so yeah, I hope all of you reading enjoyed the chapter, and like always, please tell me if you liked it, or have constructive criticism. Honestly, every time I get a review, I feel like Hermione when she gets a test back. Was that a bad comparison? I'm sorry...


	23. Revelations

"Open up!" Ron shouted to the door. He banged mercilessly upon it, forgetting that Hermione had already performed protective charms around the shack. "Come on, open up!"

He pressed his ear up against the door, in an attempt to hear signs of life. He heard nothing. "It's me! Open up!" Still, nothing. He sighed. "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow. Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow." 'Only the real me would know about that...' Ron thought to himself, remembering the day he and Harry met on the train, and how Fred and George told him a fake spell to make his rat yellow. 'Still can't believe Scabbers was Peter Pettigrew...that creepy, old git...'

Pressing his ear even closer, he tried to make out any voices. And then suddenly, the shack's door was pulled open, and Ron was propelled inside, the door closing promptly behind him.

Arms wrapped tightly around him. "Ron! Are you okay?!" Hermione asked worriedly, instantly removing the identity charm.

Harry's attention, however, instantly drew to Hermione's beaded bag, which he eyed hungrily. "Is the food in there?"

"Listen, Ron, did you see the paper?! Harry and I got it this morning, and-" she stopped.

He raised an eyebrow, which was still dirty blonde and bushy. "What is it?"

"Where's Draco?!" Hermione cried, flinging her arms up into the air.

Ron had the decency to look embarrassedly at the floor. "Well...er...me and Malfoy...we sort of...had a bit of a scrap earlier..."

Harry smirked. "A bit?"

"Harry, this is serious!" yelled Hermione. "If anyone finds out that Draco really isn't dead, which I don't know how _that_ rumour spread, but..." she gasped for breath. "You can't just _leave _him there!"

Ron leaned against the door crossly. "It's not like he was being perfectly polite on this whole little 'trip' either, 'Mione. Why do you always side with him?"

"_Ronald Bilius Weasley_. Honestly! For once could you just forget about your little rivalry with Draco, and actually gather some _sense_?!" She punctuated each of her words with a push at Ron's chest.

Ron looked over to Harry furiously, who simply shrugged his shoulders, and backed away. "For once, could _you _forget about Malfoy, and actually help us accomplish something?! We're only supposed to be here for shelter for a few days, so we can find a way to get into the school again." He retorted slowly. "To find what?! The bloody Horcruxes, in case you've forgotten where your loyalties lie-"

"You think I haven't been doing anything?! All you ever do is argue with everyone, and sit around whining and complaining! You've become harder to tolerate than Draco!" Hermione fumed, folding her arms over her chest.

Ron's face reddened with fury. "DRACO, DRACO, DRACO!" he shouted, mimicking her relentlessly. "_Oh, is Draco okay? Is he happy? Is he comfortable? We don't want him to be left out!_"

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but he continued heatedly. "But you know what 'Mione? HE BLOODY LEFT. HE'S NOT HERE, AND HE'S NEVER COMING BACK. He's been our adversary for years, how can you just bring him here, and all of a sudden expect us to _trust_ him?!"

"YOU LEFT TOO!" Hermione screamed back. "You left us finding Horcruxes, because you couldn't _handle_ the fact that-"

"Stop it! Stop fighting!" Harry shouted suddenly, standing in between them as though to shield either of them from each other's words. But it was too late.

"I CAME BACK, HERMIONE. UNLIKE THAT FOUL GIT. HOW CAN YOU JUST SIDE WITH HIM, AFTER ALL WE'VE BEEN THROUGH TOGETHER. YOU, ME, AND HARRY, THAT'S THE WAY IT'S BEEN, AND-" he swallowed. "That's the way it'll always be."

"Don't blame me for your jealousy! I-" Hermione's voice wavered a bit.

Ron leered darkly. "Tell me, Hermione. _Are_ you in love with him?" he asked, spite creeping into his words.

"Ron, don't-" Harry started, a weird kind of expression on his face.

She looked down...almost vulnerable, she was...but only for a moment. "Don't you dare! So what if I am, it's none of your business!" she replied angrily. "And for your information...we are just friends."

"Why do I care? Why do I care? Hermione, I've been caring ever since Harry and I saved your arse from that bloody troll in first year! You can't just go falling in love, on a whim, with pricks like Mal-"

Hermione shot him a death glare, fury held hostage in her brown eyes. She didn't say anything, she didn't hex him. She walked over to her bed calmly, away from Harry and Ron. Neither one of them saw the lone tear running down her face.

* * *

That night, long after Ron and Hermione reconciled awkwardly, and Harry pointed out the food at the bottom of the little beaded bag, Hermione sat up, fully awake. Ron and Harry were fast asleep, their stomachs contentedly full. She, on the other hand, could hardly eat anything, despite the growing hunger arising in her own stomach.

It was a strange concept to her...waiting for someone. She and Harry waited for Ron, months ago, when he left the tent under the influence of Salazar Slytherin's locket.

But this time was different. A whole new experience for Hermione. There was this aching feeling nearing her heart; a lump of memories stuck in her throat. She didn't know what to think, or feel, or do.

So, she gathered the covers around her, and laid back down on her pillow; already wet with silent tears. '_He's never coming back_.'

* * *

**Author's Note- **Hello. SO. What do you think? Right now, I'm thinking. "Awwww, Hermioneeeeeee." But that's just me. But then again...yeah I'm not giving you any hints. But, just know that Draco Malfoy...I don't remember what I was going to say. Er...bye! Might as well fight two dementors with one Patronus. So, it's almost Harry's birthday! (And Neville's, but he's irrelevant.) Just kidding, Neville, I love you. *hugs*


	24. Living in the Grey

"Rise and shine, boy!" Aberforth called out, heading downstairs from his sleeping quarters. Draco was passed out on one of the lumpy couches in the back of the pub, one hand clutching his mother's wand, and the other reaching towards the floor. Still in deep sleep, he only responded by shifting slightly on the couch, and skimming the floor with his hand.

Aberforth grunted irritably. "Wake up!" He shouted, nudging him with his foot.

"Nungh...uhhh...ohhh..." Draco responded sleepily, stretching his arms. Aberforth tapped him again. "Ahh!" he cried, covering himself up with the blanket, only to fall off the couch.

The large, wiry man chuckled and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Get up, boy. We have things to do."

Draco resisted the urge to throw Aberforth's meaty hands off of him, but instead he sat back on the couch and yawned. "What do you have in mind?"

"Work." Aberforth said, shoving a broom at him. "The pub opens up in 3 hours and I need this place spotless."

He blinked. "Sweep...?" he asked, almost uncertainly, holding the broom before him awkwardly. "Er..."

He heard gruff laughter once again. "Don't worry, I only kid. A bit of magic can put up this shop quickly!"

"Oh." He looked absolutely perplexed. "Why the he..." he swallowed. "Why must we wake up so early then?"

"I'd rather not wake up to the Dark Mark floating over my pub, thanks. Me and my goats...we could always escape just in time..."

Draco shifted uncomfortably, as Aberforth looked up towards the ceiling, apparently lost in some sort of a trance.

"Er..."

"I also wanted to talk to you about something." He said quietly. "Why are you here?"

Under scrutiny, he compulsively reached for his arm. "I told you. I never really murdered Granger, and I don't know why-"

"No, boy!" interrupted Aberforth. "Why are you _here_?"

"I don't know." He replied honestly. "I just ended up here, after..."

"After what?"

"Weasley...er...Ron and I..." he struggled to form Ron's name with his lips as if it were an Unforgivable Curse. "We had a row...and I left...and..." Draco's voice trailed off.

Aberforth sighed. "None of this adds up to me."

"What do you mean?"

"Where are you? What I mean by that is...what side are you on? You seemed awfully pleased about killing that Hermione Granger in the Prophet...Maybe I-"

Draco swallowed the anger bubbling up inside of him. "The _Prophet_..." he spat. "Also said that I was bloody _dead_. Shouldn't be trusted so much, should it?"

"You tell me why you, Harry Potter, and those Granger and Weasley kids were holed up in the Shrieking Shack, then." Aberforth replied triumphantly.

Draco froze. 'How the...'

"Speechless, I see." He produced a small mirror from his pocket. "I see everything."

A chill ran down Draco's spine. "I don't know." He said.

Aberforth looked puzzled. "What don't you know?"

"I don't know whether I should go back? I don't know what to do? You probably won't let me stay..." He stood up, as if ready to go, but was pushed back down to the couch.

"You don't know where you side?"

He nodded.

A dark shadow passed over Aberforth's face. "When you told me you saved...er...Hermia?"

"Hermione." Draco said quietly.

"Yes, Hermione. Why did you do it?"

He looked down at his feet, and scratched his neck. "Dunno..." he muttered.

"Get some sense into your head, boy!" Aberforth shouted suddenly. "Choose where you're loyal to, and _stay there_."

Draco looked taken aback. "Er...But-but I..." he sighed. "They're planning things without me, alright. I'll admit it. I'm different. I don't belong. I'm...neither light nor dark." Silence passed over the pub, and light washed over the walls, as the sun began to rise.

"GET OUT!" Aberforth yelled, a crazed look in those piercing blue eyes. "GET OUT THEN!"

He stayed where he was, terrified for a moment.

"STOP DECIDING WHAT YOU THINK FITS RIGHT OR WRONG, AND JUST _DO_. D'YOU THINK MY BROTHER THOUGHT THAT, DID YOU?" he bellowed. "D'YOU THINK HE THOUGHT ABOUT THAT WHEN HE LEFT ME AND ARIANA FOR THAT FOOLISH LITTLE GRINDELWALD? WHEN HE ULTIMATELY DECIDED THAT SHE WAS TO GO WITH HIM?! THAT I WAS NO LONGER _STABLE _ENOUGH TO LOVE MY OWN SISTER..."

Draco shook his head, not quite sure of what he was opposing.

Aberforth seemed to calm down for a moment, his chest rising and falling slowly. "My brother's last wishes were to watch Harry Potter, and aide him in his endeavors...But you, boy...You need to step out of the grey, and _into the light_."

"Maybe I belong in the grey."

"No such thing! Choose...and be done with it." And with that, Aberforth Dumbledore went back behind the bar, searching for something in one of the cabinets.

Draco sat on the couch, blankly. After all his years of living in the grey...Fate had decidedly pushed him to a decision. Inside, he knew light was where he truly belonged...yet...Fate had a funny way of pulling him back to the dark. Living in the grey became a habit, almost...a habit of discontinuity.

And...Surprisingly enough, Fate seemed to come in the bad-tempered, shrewd, bushy-haired form of Aberforth Dumbledore.

* * *

**Author's Note-** Hey. I'm disappointed because one of my favorite Youtubers missed an upload today *cough cough* Kingsley *cough cough*. So, of course I couldn't let that happen to you guys. I love you all so much, and I hope you liked today's chapter. Thank you for making my day, and reviewing. (When I first started posting this story, I expected some flames. Er...is it normal to not get any? Or am I just wierd?) At least I know I might be doing _something _right. :)


	25. In Bad Faith

Draco lounged on the divan above the pub, drinking firewhisky after firewhisky. There was an emptiness in his gut that remained unfulfilled. The whisky left a scorching sensation there, as though someone lit a match to his insides. He cherished that feeling. The same feeling obtained from licking a poison off the lips.

He downed the last bottle, swallowing deeply as the liquid danced sinfully with his tongue. He didn't have the strength to take another. He didn't have the strength to move. There was that feeling of procrastinated intentions roaming freely. Aberforth's words continued to echo in his mind.

It frustrated Draco to no end. How was he supposed to step forth from the grey...if there was no path to walk upon? Or, perhaps, there was, but his past struck him unable to see it.

But Draco Malfoy was no Gryffindor. He found it difficult to simply blindly find his way there. There was no need to trust something invisible. But, his thoughts continued to drift towards his fate. Perhaps Fate had already laid the path of stones—and this was all a test. He'll succeed only if he finds the courage to take the first step.

So, that night, after everyone had already cleared out, Draco decided to talk to Aberforth. He didn't know what he was going to say. But, it didn't matter. As long as he could leave the grey.

"Hogwarts." He said.

"Excuse me?"

A hint of a smile grew on Draco's face. "That's where they wanted to go." He looked expectantly at Aberforth, who shook his head.

"I don't know anything about that blasted place." He said briskly, taking out two bottles of firewhisky.

Draco smirked. "Weren't you, oh I don't know..._educated_ there?"

"Wipe that smile off your face, boy." Started Aberforth. He opened a bottle, and handed the other to Draco, who refused it quietly, and waited for an answer.

"Listen. All Hogwarts offered me, was an opportunity to go without my sister for _months_ at a time. While she was locked up at home, with no one to talk to but our mum...and eventually..." he looked away forlornly. "She was gone too...

The words came out of Draco's mouth before he could stop himself. "I'm sorry..."

Aberforth took a swig of firewhisky and nodded in compliance. "Me too."

"But, they need to get to Hogwarts. It's the only way they can-"

"Do, what, boy?" came a grunt in response. "It's over. There is no _war_, as you rebellious little youngsters seem to think there is."

"Funny, because you weren't telling me that last night. I thought you wanted me to...'step out of the grey'...choose sides..."

There was silence for a moment.

"You've got some nerve, boy..." Aberforth started, finishing his bottle, and scratching his beard thoughtfully.

Draco tried his hardest to muster a smile. "It's not nerve we need to fight this war..." His expression darkened. "We need to get into Hogwarts."

"We?" he chuckled. "Who's we?"

"I." his voice wavered as he paced around the room. "_I_ need to get into Hogwarts. _I_ am counting on you, to get me there."

"And what if I _don't_?"

A smirk appeared upon his face once more. "Then I'll be living in the grey."

* * *

"He's...dead."

Once the words left Narcissa Malfoy's mouth, she resisted the urge to put a hand to her lips and hold them back in. It was done. The damage. Yet, a guilt hadn't arisen in her when she did. But, she knew that she would pay the price. They had escaped; all of them. And the Dark Lord knew. She winced with pain, as she felt her husband's nails digging into the alabaster skin of her weak arms. She wouldn't go by unpunished that night.

His thin lips curled. "Dead?"

Narcissa nodded. "Dead." She looked down at the floor nervously, "He...he tried to-to kill the mudblood girl..." Her only hopes were that he would view her apprehension as mourning for her child.

"Tried?" Voldemort's eyes flickered from Narcissa to Lucius, and then back again. "Yet..._Potter_ and his accomplices, have ESCAPED ONCE AGAIN!" his voice rose in fury, and dropped to a dangerous whisper. "As your _dearest son_ has passed, I daresay you find the courage to find an excuse, Malfoy?"

She swallowed, knowing what was to come. "No, sir."

"I find..." he continued. "That my supporters consider me to be...most..._merciful_. You, Lucius-" he glanced in the direction of the bedraggled, blonde man. "Have been at my side since the very beginning."

Lucius nodded feverishly. "Yes, My Lord! If you could only-"

"_SILENCE_! _I have not asked you to speak._"

Narcissa tried not to notice the spot of blood appearing where his hands now rested on her shoulder.

"Step forward...Narcissa." he motioned her forward with one insipid hand.

'For Draco...' She walked slowly; no tears.

With one fluid motion, he pulled out his wand, a trace of a sneer upon his stony, snake-like features. And with one miniscule flick of the hand, Narcissa Malfoy was left writhing on the floor. His smile widened at the screams, yet he himself was silent. No words.

The Dark Lord never needed them.

* * *

**Author's Note-** Hello! Just so you know, this last passage, with Narcissa, and Voldemort, isn't set at the same time as the Aberforth/Draco scene in the pub. It's sort of a flashback, but Draco has no idea that this happened. So! Like always, thank you for reading and reviewing and following and favoriting and talking and _everything. _It really does mean a lot to me, and as an "author", I really appreciate everything you do. I love you, and good night!

P.S.- A virtual internet hug goes out to whoever got the chapter title reference. :)


	26. Escaping the Grey & Into the Light

"Hermione, are you sure you don't want a bite of this?" Ron asked between mouthfuls. "It's _really_ good."

Hermione shook her head, without even meeting his eyes.

Harry grinned. "Try it with the pasties, Ron." He passed one over.

"_Bloody hell_." His face contorted with pleasure as he took a bite. "This is-"

"Would you two stop talking about food?!" Hermione shouted all of a sudden, getting out of bed.

Harry shifted uncomfortably on his, shooting a knowing look to Ron, who still seemed oblivious.

"But, _blimey_, 'Mione! Oh, bloody hell, that rhymes!" He stuffed another pasty in his mouth, and chortled.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You're absolutely disgusting, Ronald."

He swallowed. "What's got your knickers in a twist?"

But, she only ignored him, and sat back on her bed with a huff.

Ron turned to exchange a look with Harry, but Harry crossed his arms. "He's not gone forever you know." He said suddenly.

Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "I haven't the slightest idea of who you are talking about, Harry."

He chuckled darkly. "Draco. You and I both know that you-"

"Just _leave me alone_, Harry!"

Ron sighed, and nudged him. "Let her be, mate."

Harry shook his head, and scowled. "Be what?! Miserable, and angry all the time? Refusing to eat anything? Crying in her sleep?" She opened her mouth to protest, but he held up a hand. "Don't bother. You think you're the only one that's up in the middle of the night?"

Hermione's cheeks went Weasley red. "I was just-"

"Save it!" said Ron. "You're my best mate, Herm-...well, my best _girl_ mate. It's bloody depressing to see you like this." He ran a hand through his hair. "Even if it is over a _ferret_..."

Harry gave him a warning look. "Listen, Hermione. I know exactly what you're going through-"

"No, you don't!" Hermione shouted suddenly. "How could you possibly know what it's like...to wait for _ages_ and _ages_, and he just-"

He rubbed his forehead, as if to free himself from the memories, and stood. "I felt that way when Sirius died." He said slowly. "Day after day after day...I thought he would..." his voice broke. "Come out of that curtain, and wink just like he always did. I thought he'd be there for me. I waited for months and months for him to come back. Even as a portrait, a ghost, a reflection in the mirror- _anything_..."

Hermione could only look at him. She bit her lip.

"But he never did..." he said finally, sitting beside her on her bed.

"But Harry..." She choked out.

Ron sat on the other side of her, awkwardly.

"He's..." she started. "He's...never coming back." She felt a tear run down her cheek, but it was too late. There's no point in ending the rain before the storm. She laid her head in the crook of Harry's neck. "He's never..." Sobs wracked her body, and everything was silent for a while.

Ron gazed at her, listening to her cries. He wrapped an arm around her cautiously. And then unexpected words came from his mouth. "I hope he does."

She got up slowly, and turned to look at him. His heart sank as soon as he saw her tearstained face. Guilt enveloped him. And then she was in his arms.

* * *

"You know, don't you?" There was no question in Draco's voice.

Aberforth sighed. More silence. And finally, he walked down the steps, leaving a bewildered Draco behind him. "Come on, boy! Before I change my mind."

Relieved, he followed suit, a victorious smirk on his face.

He led Draco into a dark, shabby room, littered with various unknown objects. 'Someone is in need of a house elf...' Draco couldn't help but thinking. 'Hermione loved house elves...' He felt a sharp pain in his chest, and blinked away the thought.

"Ariana." Said Aberforth, moving towards a large portrait on the wall. She smiled, and curtsied at Draco.

"Is that your sister?" he asked, already knowing the answer to the question.

Ariana winked.

"You know what to do." Aberforth told her. Draco furrowed his brows, as she walked away. She seemed to be in some sort of garden...and her blue frock seemed to disappear in the distance, once she left.

"How old is she?" he blurted, forgetting that she had died.

"Thirteen." Aberforth didn't show a sign of remorse, only affection as Ariana returned...with..."Who is that?" asked Draco, who peered closely at the portrait.

He was suddenly pushed backwards as the portrait hole opened, and a figure stepped out from behind it.

He looked up. "_Longbottom_?!"

It couldn't be. He was much too tall, and his face was adorned with many purplish bruises, and a nasty cut went down his cheek—the blood still fresh and shiny.

"What is he doing here?" Neville asked, looking Draco up and down.

'The same could be asked of you, Longbottom...' he thought, clearly showing self-restraint.

"No time for talk, just take him there." Said Aberforth gruffly.

Neville walked back into the hole, and beckoned him in. "Well, alright then."

Draco looked up uncertainly at Aberforth. What was he to say? "Thank you." Was what came out of his mouth.

Aberforth's face showed a hint of a smile. "Take care of yourself."

He walked through the portrait hole, and looked back once. And then he felt a shard of glass being shoved into his hands. And the door closed. And they were washed in darkness.

"If you ever find yourself in the grey..." Aberforth's voice echoed from behind him. "I'll be watching."

* * *

**Author's Note-** Whoa, I've been writing this story for a month. Don't know if that's something to celebrate, or if that just means I need to re-examine my life. Haha, just kidding. How was this chapter? Speaking of chapters, I hope you enjoyed this one. Speaking of enjoyment, I watched Prisoner of Azkaban for like the bajillionth time today. Speaking of Prisoner of Azkaban, I got really inspired to write about Sirius in this chapter. Speaking of Sirius, I cry every time Bellatrix kills him. Speaking of Bellatrix, I've always hated her ever since I discovered that she tortured Neville's parents into insanity. Speaking of Neville, it's his birthday tomorrow. :)


	27. Through the Portrait Hole

"What's wrong with your face, Longbottom?" Draco asked curiously.

Neville grimaced. "Haven't you heard about those blasted Carrow twins?"

He nodded, and then a look of surprise crossed his face after a moment. "Please don't tell me they're at Hogwarts?"

"Well, you asked about my face, didn't you?"

Neville stopped them abruptly following a few minutes of silence. "Listen. I don't know why exactly you're here...but we're about to go in. So just tell me one thing."

Draco nodded.

"Are they alive? Harry? Ron? Hermione?" he ran a pale, bruised hand through his hair.

"Yeah." He gulped. "They are."

"Were you with them?" Neville inquired.

Draco ignored him, and instead opened the portrait door, and climbed outside. Expecting a small, empty room, he jerked up at the sound of sighs and gasps erupting around him.

"Where the hell are we?!" he exclaimed to Neville, ignoring the large group of people behind him.

"Room of Requirement." Said Neville calmly. "This is where we have to go if we don't want to be caught by Snape...or worse, the Carrows..."

"What the bloody hell is _he_ doing here?" another voice called out. Neville turned around to see who it was. "I've been asking that question, myself, Seamus." He grinned.

Before Draco could respond however, a flushed Ginny Weasley ran into the room, followed by a laughing Fred and George.

"It's not him, Ginny." Said Neville.

Ginny's face fell, before she directed her attention towards Draco. "_You!_" she screamed.

"I believe we've met, Weaselette." Draco muttered, shifting subconsciously towards the portrait hole. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea...

She lunged herself at him, and he backed away. "WHERE ARE THEY? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" She pulled her wand out of her robes, and stabbed at his neck.

He instinctively shrugged her off. "I'm here _because_ of them, you red-headed..." his sentence trailed off, as Ginny pinned him to the wall by his arms. "Why aren't they with you then?!"

Fred and George, who had seemingly magically appeared out of nowhere, pulled her back. "Calm down, Ginny, I'm sure the tosser has something to say!" Fred joked, yet a serious glint wavered in his eyes.

"I'm here because they needed to get here." Said Draco. "I'm here because I was the only one that knew how. I'm here because I'm _here_, damn it!"

The crowd before him murmured softly after his words.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go."

He stalked towards the door of the Room of Requirement, with a determined expression on his face.

"Oi, where the hell do you think you're going?!" a voice said behind him. Draco turned exasperatedly to see a tall boy glare at him defiantly. Dean grabbed him by the shoulder. "We'll need an explanation first."

"I'm not explaining anything to a room of bloody Gryffindors." He said sharply. "I'm leaving."

He suddenly felt a sharp rap on the top of his head, and the feeling of cold water trickling down his back. "What the-" he started.

"Disillusionment Charm." An apparently, Ravenclaw girl said shyly. "You don't want to be seen."

Draco blinked. "Er...thanks..." he looked down at himself and gasped at the sight of his now camouflage-like appearance. For the first time, he looked around the room. A large group of students were gathered there, watching him silently. And with that, he exited the room; swearing under his breath. 'Where the hell am I supposed to go?" he chided himself. 'They mentioned something about basilisk fangs...and Horcruxes...whatever the hell those are...'

He found himself walking down towards the dungeons, where both Snape's office and the Slytherin common rooms were located. 'Where am I supposed to find that...are they bloody-'

"Ooof!" A boy exclaimed in front of him. Draco froze. "I'm going effing nutters..." he said.

Draco looked up finally, and relief washed over him. "Blaise!" he shouted.

Blaise looked around worriedly. "Who is there?!" He pulled out his wand.

Draco sighed. "Can't you recognize me by my voice, Blaise?"

He backed away slowly, still pointing his wand in front of him.

"I'm under a Disillusionment Charm, and I don't know how to-"

He felt another sharp tap on the top of his head. And then Blaise gasped so loudly, he clamped one of his own hands over his mouth. He engulfed him in a bone-breaking hug. "I knew you weren't-!" he stopped himself suddenly.

"What is it?" asked Draco.

Blaise looked over his shoulder. "Not here. There are always eyes watching, these days."

He furrowed his brows. "Where are we going?"

"Slytherin common room. Then we can talk."

With yet _another_ rap on the head, Blaise led him further down the corridor, where a blank portrait faced them.

"What happened to-"

Blaise shushed him quietly, and muttered something under his breath. The portrait opened, with a strange creaking sound following after it. He motioned him into an almost empty common room.

"Didn't you just leave us, mate?" said a voice to the right of them.

Draco turned to see Theodore Nott lounging on a grey couch by the fireplace. 'Still as reedy as ever, I see...'

Blaise grinned. "I got caught out by Snape." He lied. "Guess I'll head up to bed..."

Once both Blaise and Draco were comfortably situated on Blaise's bed, there was a momentary silence in which they both simply stared blankly at each other, as though neither of them knew where to begin.

"Why are you here?" Blaise responded finally.

Draco sighed, for about the millionth time that night. "I never killed Her-...Granger." he said instead.

Blaise chuckled darkly. "I already assumed that, Draco. You're not a killer. Why are you here?" he repeated.

"To find something." He answered cryptically.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Another exasperating sigh. "I don't know."

"You need to go back." Blaise said firmly.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"You need to go back." He repeated. "It's not safe here, I thought you would _know_ that-"

"If I was worried about safety, d'you really think I would have come here?"

"Look, I don't know how or why you came here. But, _you need to go back_."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Just trust me."

"I'm not here for me!" Draco whispered as loudly as he could. "There's an effing war about to go on, in case you hadn't noticed!"

"I knew it." He said quietly.

"What, now?"

"You're on the run with her aren't you? And you came back? Why?"

Draco looked astounded, but Blaise only chuckled. "You're fairly predictable, you know...or at least to me."

"I'm going back." He said suddenly.

"What? You just got here!" there was a mix of amazement and admiration in his voice.

"You're right. I need to bring them back. Without them...the light..."

"Have you gone loony, mate?"

"The light won't ever be..." he fingered the glass shard in his pocket as his voice trailed off.

"I'm going back." He repeated, getting up from the bed.

"You can't just go out there like that! Any minute now, they'll come back. _They mustn't know you're here_." Blaise whispered.

"What, can't they-" Draco started.

"No." he interjected. "In fact..."

Once more, Draco felt the cold, wet sensation down his back. "I'm getting tired of that, you know, Blaise."

His mouth turned up a bit at the corners. "It's nice to have you back, Draco." He paused. "But I hope you know...Hogwarts isn't as it used to be."

Draco nodded ominously. "I know."

* * *

**Author's Note-** Why, hello there. I hope you've prepared, because it's Harry's birthday today! And J.K. Rowling's of course. The creator of this wonderful world I happen to write fanfiction for. I didn't get him a present, but I _did_ draw a portrait of him. If only it were a moving portrait. Ergh. My Hogwarts letter is _longggg_ overdue. By, the way, I hope you liked this chapter. But never mind about that, that's irrelevant. What we should be _really_ concerned about is the fact that Harry is now 33 years old. What. What?!


	28. Taking Action?

"Listen, guys." Said Hermione, as she paced around the shack.

Ron, who was chewing on a particularly disgusting Bertie's Every Flavour Bean, looked up.

Harry looked up as well, his hand closed tightly over the snitch Dumbledore had given him.

"Time is running out. We _need_ to find a way to get into Hogwarts before it's too late."

Harry sighed. "We can't just get up one day and expect to be let through into the school, without any repercussions. We'll need some sort of plan, but so far, we have no way to sneak in anyways."

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to try! We've been cooped up in this shack for about a week, we need to do _something_!"

Ron spit out the jelly bean, grimacing at the yellowish green glob in his hand. "I reckon we should just get to the station, first." He said.

Hermione glanced up towards the ceiling thoughtfully. "You know...that isn't such a bad idea..."

"That isn't such a bad idea?!" Harry argued. "I'm sure they're there, _waiting_ for us to get to the station and attempt to sneak into Hogwarts. Vol-...Tom's not that stupid you know."

"But, we can't stay here forever and wait for the perfect moment, Harry! We still have other Horcruxes, and the more we wait, the more he gains power. Regardless, I'm sure he's known for quite a while that we're hunting Horcruxes—there's no point in denying it." She added, as Harry opened his mouth to protest.

"Bet he's already looking for you now; right at this moment!" Ron chimed in, reaching for a seemingly harmless pink bean from the bag.

Harry fingered the Snitch in his hand, lost in thought. "Maybe I should just try to reach him—and see what exactly he's doing right now...then we can find out if-"

"Harry, no!" Hermione shouted, looking as if she wanted to shake the notion out of him. "That's exactly what he _wants_!"

"There's no time to worry about that! I agree, we need to get into Hogwarts, but it'd be better if we know exactly what we're up against, wouldn't it?" he reasoned.

"That doesn't sound safe, mate." Ron replied. "Remember what happened in 5th year?"

Harry shot him a look. He knew exactly what Ron was referring to, and he hated that Ron had made the accusation. It'd been haunting him ever since Sirius died, and he _definitely_ did not need Ron to bring it back up. But he sighed, nonetheless. "Alright, alright. We can go to the station. But we'll need the map, to make sure there are no prying eyes." He pointed to the Marauder's Map which he'd flung sleepily on his bed earlier.

"Excellent!" said Hermione, a pleased gleam in her eyes.

This time, Harry exchanged a knowing look with Ron, who grinned back. They both knew that this was the first time Hermione seemed excited about something in a while...even though to most, her endeavors would actually be quite frightening.

She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should put all of our things in my bag, for now. We wouldn't want to leave everything here—especially if we successfully get to Hogwarts. Are we heading out now?"

Ron blinked.

"I guess so." Harry replied. "There's no need in putting it off, now that we have a plan."

Ron blinked again. "What?...So that's it? That's all we had to do?"

Harry shrugged, and Hermione nodded, as though she were saying "Honestly, Ronald!" in the back of her mind.

"I believe it would be best if we Apparate underneath the invisibility cloak." She suggested.

Harry brought it out from somewhere underneath his bed. "Are you sure we can all fit underneath this?" he asked skeptically.

"I'm sure no one will pay attention to our feet!" Ron piped up.

"We could always cast a Disillusionment Charm on ourselves. That way no one could see our feet anyways." Said Hermione.

Harry nodded. "That's brilliant, Hermione." Yet, he shuddered a bit as he remembered the strange sensation of the Disillusionment Charm when Mad-Eye first introduced him to Grimmauld Place. 'Mad-Eye...' he suddenly felt a twinge of guilt and remorse.

He felt Hermione nudge him. "Harry...?"

"Oh, right. Here." He handed over the Marauder's map, as well as a jacket he'd worn the previous night; and she stowed it away in her bag.

"Alright then!" she said briskly. "It's all settled then."

"_Finally_..." Ron complained, and Hermione rolled her eyes. "As if _you_ could come up with a plan, Ronald..." she responded airily, punctuating her words with a tap on each of their heads, and ending with a flourish of her wand towards herself.

"What was that?" Harry inquired.

Hermione unfolded the invisibility cloak, and covered the three of them as best as she could. "The spell is altered slightly, when one casts it upon herself." She answered. "Merlin, Ron, you're getting so tall!"

"Oi!" said Ron.

"Alright...remember to hold on to the invisibility cloak, and close the door after you step out, okay?" Hermione warned them, opening the door slowly. "The enchantments will lift once all of us leave, and there's no one left to protect the area."

They stepped out at once, Ron holding his nose to prevent himself from sneezing.

"I'm going to Apparate now..." Hermione whispered. "Do you two have everything; just to make sure?"

Ron sighed in annoyance, and Harry countered with, "Just _do _it, Hermione!"

"Alright, alright!" she hissed. "Wait, before we-"

"NOW!" Harry and Ron bellowed at the same time, the latter almost knocking the cloak off himself.

"Very subtle, Potter."

They all halted, Hermione feeling an urge to choke the two exasperating boys beside her. And then she looked up at their imposter.

Ron groaned. "Oh, _bloody hell_."

* * *

**Author's Note-** I wonder who _that_ could be...anyways, when I'm uploading it, it's still Harry's birthday, so...HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARRY! (And J.K. Rowling, the wonderful author of the world I post fanfiction under as we speak.) Also, do any of you have a Pottermore? Because I do, and we all got a pleasant surprise this morning when both the rest of the Prisoner of Azkaban _and_ the new formatting updated. The thing is though, the dueling kind of sucks now. :( Legit, you're lucky if you get like 60 points on a spell; it's so difficult. Ah, well, I suppose I'll have to earn housepoints by making potions and collecting random, and mostly useless, crap. Hmm...well _that_ escalated quickly! LOL Goodnight everyone, I hope you had a great day, and that you liked the chapter! Some Dramione goodness to come, I pinky promise! :)


	29. Through the Portrait Hole, Again?

"Oh." Said Harry, a mixture of relief and resentment etched in his face.

Hermione, however, didn't say a word. Instead she stalked back into the shack, refusing to look at any of them.

"What happened to her?" said Draco.

"You unbelievable _prat_!" shouted Ron, entering the shack, still invisible to everyone.

"Oh, that must be Weasley..." Draco replied mildly.

Harry removed the Disillusionment Charm, and threw the cloak off himself. "Are you kidding me, Malfoy?!" He followed after Ron, and shut the door behind him. "Where did you-" he started to ask, and then turned around, realizing that Draco didn't come in behind him. Opening the door once more, he grabbed him by the shirt sleeve. "Get in here!"

"Get your filthy hands off of me!" Draco snatched his arm away, and smirked. "You really thought you could get into Hogwarts like _that_?"

"For your information, we weren't going to Hogwarts!" said Ron defensively.

"Nice try." Draco scoffed. "I knew exactly where you were going."

"Why are you _here_?" asked Harry, folding his arms over his chest. He walked over to where Hermione was sitting on the bed, and sighed.

"Well, after your friend Weasley and I had a spat...I sort of...went off for a bit."

Ron shot him a look. "Coward..." he muttered under his breath.

For once, Draco ignored the insult, and continued. "The Hog's Head, actually..."

"We met there for the DA..." said Harry, lost in thought. "So, what next?"

"Did you know that Aberforth Dumbledore runs that place?"

Hermione's ears perked up, but she didn't turn to look at him.

"How do we know, that you're not lying, Malfoy?" Ron cut in.

Draco smirked, and pulled a shiny looking object out of his pocket. "Because he gave me _this_, when I snuck into Hogwarts."

Harry's fingers instinctively went toward the shard of glass in his own pocket. And then Draco's retort actually registered in his mind. His jaw dropped.

"YOU WENT WHERE?!"

Harry whipped around, to see Hermione's astonished figure leap off the bed behind him.

"Hogwarts." Said Draco, who looked much too pleased with himself.

"You've got to be bloody kidding me..." muttered Ron.

"Ron, you know none of us can see you, right?" Harry added.

"Wha...er...oh, right!" Harry tapped him on the head with his wand. "Thanks, Harry..."

Draco sniggered. "So smart, Weasley..."

"DID ANY OF YOU HEAR WHAT MALFOY JUST SAID?!" screamed Hermione.

Ron scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.

"How _exactly_ did you get into Hogwarts?!" she glared at him.

"I thought I asked you to call me Draco, Hermione..."

Hermione's hand inched towards the wand in her pocket.

"Alright, alright! Would you all just calm down?" Draco said.

"No, we _can't_ calm down!" Ron argued. "D'you know how long 'Mione's been waiting on you to come back? Did you know that's she's been sleeping in your bed ever since you left? Or that she's been crying herself to-"

"That's quite _enough_!" shouted Hermione, her face red, and her wand out. "We don't have time for any of this; we NEED to get into Hogwarts! Just because-" her voice trailed off and her eyes flickered to Draco, who watched her with both guilt and curiosity. "Besides, we can't simply go into the Forbidden Forest from here, I'm sure Snape's blocked the passageway."

"Hermione's right." Harry said. "We can sort everything out _after_ we get into Hogwarts. Malfoy, you Apparate us out."

Draco blinked. "I don't take _orders_ from you, Pot..." he faltered at the look on both Harry and Hermione's face. He ignored Ron, who looked as though he were about to hex him into an oblivion. "Fine."

"That's what I thought." Harry wrapped the invisibility cloak around them.

"Potter, we're four grown adults under a cloak sized for one teenaged boy." Scoffed Draco. "I really don't think that method's going to work."

Ron swore under his breath, and Harry ignored the both of them. "Just do it, Malfoy."

"Whatever." Draco grabbed Harry's arm, and Ron did the same. Hermione stood still for a moment, watching him. Finally, he caught her eye, and smirked. She looked away briskly, and took Ron's hand. "Let's go." Her voice was slightly muffled...as though she had something caught in her throat.

Draco nodded, and furrowed his brows in concentration. Soon enough, the room began to swirl around them, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione seemed to disappear into the maelstrom of color. In only a few seconds, it subsided into a new scene—outside the Hog's Head.

"What's this?" came Ron's voice.

"The Hog's Head." Said Harry. "Don't you remember when we met here for the DA? Fifth year?"

"Oh, right...Well why'd you Apparate outside then?" he asked.

"_Obviously_, because Dumbledore's brother probably set an Anti-Apparition charm on the pub. If any of you have read _Hogwarts, A History_, you would know that other locations can both be unplottable and resistant to Apparition." Hermione cut in.

Ron snickered, and Harry nodded incomprehensibly. "Sure."

"So are we just going to stand here, or..." said Draco.

Harry nodded once more, walking closer to the shabby, old tavern, and knocking firmly on the door.

"Potter, it's a _pub_, I'm sure the door is open." Draco leered.

Harry glared at him. "I'd rather him come out and greet us, thanks. I'm pretty sure it'd be quite dangerous if three on the run, and one dead wizard were found just bursting in an ordinary pub."

"It hasn't even opened yet!" said Draco.

"Well, that's exactly why he needed to knock." Hermione added, pointedly. "Now, get back underneath the invisibility cloak, Harry."

Harry, however, was staring intently at the same shard of glass in his hand. "The eye..." he muttered.

"What is it, mate?" Ron spoke up.

"Nothing." he lied.

Suddenly, Harry could hear heavy footsteps becoming gradually louder and louder. "Who is there?!" came a loud, gruff voice. He opened the door, slowly, and peeked his head out.

"Aberforth." Said Draco. They exchanged looks.

"Ah." He said, stroking the straggly ends of his grey beard. "Come on in, then..."

Ron, who had stood up to his full height, knocked the cloak off of him and Hermione. "Just..._do_ something with this!" she muttered, balling it up and stuffing it in her bag.

"No need to get your knickers in-"

Hermione looked at him, without saying a single word. "Er...nevermind..."

Aberforth ushered them in quickly, leading them past the bar, and into the back room. Light instantly flooded the room, and he lit a candle with his wand and set it atop a small table near Ariana's portrait. For a moment, they took each other in, in silence.

"I've been expecting you three." Aberforth said finally.

Harry seemed lost in thought. "Are you Dumbledore's brother?"

He nodded briskly. "No, time to explain, I'm sure Draco'll do the talking very soon."

Harry and Ron started meaningfully at Draco, who avoided their eyes.

"Ariana."

"Who's that?" Ron asked bluntly, pointing to the vivacious, young girl in the portrait, clad in robin-eggs blue.

"Come on, Weasley, one cannot be but so daft..." Draco muttered under his breath.

However, neither Aberforth, nor the girl responded. Instead, Ariana disappeared one more into the garden.

Hermione watched her, interestedly. "Where is she going?"

"Spoke too soon..." said Harry, just as Ariana began to walk back. "Hang on..."

"What's going on?" Draco demanded.

Aberforth sighed. "I should have known, they're in _school_, remember?"

"So?" said Ron.

"_So_. You dimwitted buffoon, you'll have to be waiting in the Room of Requirement all by your lonesome selves." He glanced at Draco. "I'm sure you'll be fine. Go on." He swung open the portrait hole with one mighty pull, and Draco stepped in, motioning for Ron, Harry, and Hermione to do the same.

"Are you sure we should..." Ron started. "Come _on_, Ronald!" protested Hermione, pulling him in. "Thank you, Prof...Mr. Dumbledore!"

And with that, the entrance was shut one more, and Aberforth watched the retreating figures of the Golden Trio, Draco Malfoy, and Ariana in the garden. He watched them with those piercing blue eyes, an uneasiness settling down inside of him. Because even the bravest men, can find a bit of grey inside themselves.

* * *

**Author's Note-** Ah, August has finally arrived. Which means that school starts soon. :'( No, actually I quite like school. Except for taking tests. I absolutely _despise_ tests. Like I would legitimately study for hours the night before, as well as several days before the actual exam. But then as soon as a see test paper, I'd be like, "Whaaaaat? (y^2 +9x -87)/(56z) is whaaaaa?!"Anyways, enough about my poor studying methods. How was the chapter? Did you like it? Did it make you feel all happy inside? Please do tell me. Because I have nothing more to do in my life besides read your reviews and write fanfiction. Well, I mean I do other things, but they're irrelevant under the context of this author's note. But right now, I'm pretty tired, and would like to go to sleep quite soon. Which is a strange thing to say, because I usually never actually sleep. But, you know...actually you don't know. And neither do I. So I'm going to shut up now before I write a whole page of random gibberish and delirious nonsense. I know none of you would enjoy reading that...So, bye!


	30. Horcrux Hunting & Library Visits

Harry paced around the Room of Requirement.

"How long are we supposed to stay in here, mate?" complained Ron.

"It's been an hour!" said Draco.

"Plenty of time that could be used to find a Horcrux, if you ask me." Hermione shot back.

Harry stopped abruptly. "We could sneak into the library." He said.

"What? Harry, that's mental!" Ron leaned forward on his elbows for emphasis.

He shook his head. "But, if we go to the library, maybe we could find something about this Ravenclaw thing Tom's hidden his soul in. That doesn't sound mental to me."

Draco groaned impatiently. "So no one's going to tell what a Horcrux is?"

"Exactly." Ron answered, a hint of a smirk on his face.

However, Harry relented. "Tom's-"

"Who's Tom?"

Harry gritted his teeth. "The person who's name is under a taboo. Now, if you'd let me finish...Tom's split his soul into seven pieces, if that makes sense. And-"

"No, it doesn't..." Draco shook his head slowly. "It really doesn't."

Ron threw Harry a, "And he calls _me_ an idiot..." look. Harry sighed deeply. "Tom. Kills. _People_." He said deliberately. "When. You. _Kill People_. Your. Soul. Can. Split. In. _Half._"

"Hey!" Draco protested. "Quit the first year jabber, would you, Potter?"

"Sorry, but that's all you can comprehend!" retorted Ron.

Harry cleared his throat. "Anyways, he's split his soul seven times. To protect those bits of his soul, he almost...er..._stores_ them, in an object."

"That's ridiculous!" Draco cut in.

"Tell that to the people who _died_." Said Harry darkly. "But, those objects...those are the Horcruxes. We need to destroy them."

"There are seven..." he stated, and Harry nodded. "How many did you destroy?"

"Well...three..."

Draco's eyebrow arched in disbelief. "Three?"

"We've collected the fourth, know where the fifth is, and know _what_ the sixth is." Ron added defensively. "So don't give us that look."

"How do you destroy them?"

"Basilisk fangs or Gryffindor's sword." Harry said briskly. "Now, if you have any more questions, I suggest you consult a library."

"Or Hermione..." Ron muttered. "She might as well be a library on legs..."

Hermione swatted him, but there was a flicker of a grin on her face.

"Where can we _possibly_ get either of those?" Draco demanded.

"_The Chamber of Secrets_!" Hermione exclaimed suddenly.

"What?" Draco's eyes reflected confusion.

"We need to go to the Chamber of Secrets! _That's_ where Harry killed the Basilisk, and _that's_ where we can find its fangs!" She looked around at them triumphantly.

"That's...that's _brilliant_, Hermione!" Harry shouted in approval. "Why don't you and Malfoy go get the basilisk fangs now, and Ron and I can head to the library to research any Ravenclaw heirlooms and such."

Ron groaned at the thought of swimming in piles and piles of library books. 'Just to find some musty old Ravenclaw thing?' He mentally slapped himself. 'At least we've caught on to _something_...'

"But, Harry!" said Hermione. "You'll _have_ to open the Chamber of Secrets; none of us can do it." She motioned to Ron and Draco.

"Why?"

"Because you're the only one that can speak Parseltongue."

Harry's eyes widened in realization. "Well, you and I can collect the fangs, then, and Ron and Mal-"

Hermione gave him a look.

"_Or_, you and Malfoy can go to the library, and Ron and I collect the fangs?"

She nodded in approval. "Malfoy and-"

"Draco!" said the man in question. "My name is-"

"No one cares." Ron sneered. "You can confess your love for her when you two are in the library."

Hermione blushed furiously. "_Malfoy and I_...can go with a Disillusionment Charm, and you and Ron can use the cloak."

"Now?" said Draco.

"Now." Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak, and Hermione charmed herself and Draco.

"Remember to meet us here, if you find anything about Ravenclaw." Harry reminded her.

And with that, they headed their separate ways.

* * *

After an hour of poring over books, Hermione laid her head on the library table and sighed. They had cast a Muffliato charm over the area, but Draco had watched amusedly as a bodiless Hermione flipped through the pages of _Significant Ravenclaw Figures in Wizarding History_.

She grabbed the next book in the pile—_Infamous Allegories of Ancient Hogwarts_. Trailing her finger down the table of contents, she groaned desperately.

"Having fun there, Granger?" Draco pestered, leaning calmly against one of the bookshelves.

She glared at him murderously. "You!" she stood up and jabbed at his chest with her finger. "You haven't been doing _anything_! I thought we were supposed to be researching together!"

He twiddled his thumbs casually. "Sorry, but I suppose I lack the patience for it."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "I _suppose _you _won't_ lack the patience for it, when...when _he_ finds out we're hunting Horcruxes at Hogwarts, and decides to kill off your arse!"

Draco sighed. "Look. All I know about Ravenclaws are that most of them are annoying bookworms, that stay confined in this library in all their free time, and go on and on about this bloody _diadem_. Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure, my arse..."

Hermione huffed in annoyance...and then looked back at him with a growing expression of interest. "Diadem? What's that?"

He feigned surprise with a smirk. "Oh! The great Hermione Granger knows nothing of Ravenclaw's diadem! Merlin's beard!"

"Oh, just tell me what it is, Malfoy!"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Some stupid tiara that Ravenclaw's daughter stole from her. So stupid...no wonder the Bloody Baron murdered her."

"Tiara?!" Hermione shrieked. "Malfoy, how did you not tell Harry about this? This could very well be the next Horcrux, and we've wasted time sitting in this library, doing absolutely-"

Draco silenced her with his lips, dragging her closer by the waist. She responded enthusiastically, surprising both him and herself. His lips were soft, and the cavern of his mouth was unbelievably warm. Her hands found the back of his neck, and deepened the kiss. His tongue traced her bottom lip curiously, and she let him, almost reluctantly, as his own hands pulled at her hair. Hermione pulled away, breathing heavily, and avoided Draco's eye. He smirked.

"Well that escalated quickly..." he teased.

She mumbled something about "distracting hormones", and picked up a random book from the stacks, reading it heatedly.

"Well, damn, Granger, I didn't know you could read upside down."

* * *

**Author's Note-** This has got to be one of my favorite chapters to write. I don't know why, but I enjoy the whole Draco/Hermione bantering aspect of their romance. Speaking of romance, did this one satisfy you? I know it wasn't much, but c'mon you can't expect Draco to realistically propose to Hermione in the library for no reason, in the middle of the story. Nor would Hermione lose her virginity in said library in the middle of a Horcrux hunt. Just a thought...Er, anyways! You may also be wondering, "OMG when is this story going to enddddd?!" If you're wondering that...you can go fu-...*coughs* No, I was only joking! This story is actually going to end pretty soon. *cue the awws and crying babies* Oh, yes, it must! But...I must give you a hint...sometimes the end isn't exactly _the end_.


	31. Ravenclaw's Diadem & Muggle Cartoons

Once they headed back to the Room of Requirement, Draco and Hermione found Harry pacing irritably and muttering under his breath. Ron, however sat on a chair in the corner of the room, longing for some jelly slugs from Hermione's bag.

Hermione stepped inside the room, closing the door behind her and Draco, and revealing herself to the two of them. Harry stopped walking immediately, and just watched her for a few seconds. Finally, he embraced her fiercely. "Thank goodness you're alive..." he whispered into her hair.

"'Mione!" Ron exclaimed, bounding off the chair for a hug. "We've been waiting for so long-"

"Thirty minutes, Ron." Harry said crossly, and urgency creeping into his voice. "Have you seen anyone? Or better yet, has anyone seen you?"

Hermione noticed the sudden insistence, and she pulled away from the both of them. "What's happened?" she asked worriedly.

Draco, who had been leaning against a wall by the door, held back a comment. 'Obviously the Weasel's got himself caught...'

"We think Snape's seen us." Said Harry.

"What? How?!" Hermione shrieked. "Did he recognize you?"

"Er...I dunno. We could barely fit the Invisibility Cloak over the both of us, and Ron's foot was poking out a bit on our way back...Unfortunately, we ran into Snape in the middle of a corridor..." he paused. "We managed to turn 'round it by the time he'd pulled out his wand to investigate, but..."

"_Harry_!" she reproached. "Why didn't you cast the Disillusionment Charm over yourselves, if it didn't fit completely? No one noticed Draco and I!"

Draco took the opportunity to reappear from the shadows. "So it's Draco, now, isn't it?" he smirked triumphantly.

Hermione chose to ignore him, but Ron stared at him with a mixture of complacence and disgust.

Harry noticed it, and quickly steered the subject away from their supposed romantic endeavors. "Well, was it worth it then?"

"Worth what?" she asked in confusion.

He straightened his glasses atop his nose, and cleared his throat. "Worth _going to the library_. Did you find anything important?"

Hermione opened her mouth to explain, but Draco beat her to it.

"Actually, we didn't." he put in.

Harry's face fell, and Ron groaned. "Nothing? Nothing at all?"

Hermione glared at him, and he raised an eyebrow, daring her to prove his statement wrong.

"No." he replied smugly. "But I did remind Hermione of Ravenclaw's diadem."

"What's that?" Ron and Harry asked in unison.

Draco continued, pacing from between Ron and Hermione as he spoke. "It's one of Ravenclaw's lost treasures; a tiara I believe. Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter, Helena, stole it from her a while back in history. Haven't you heard of-"

"The Grey Lady!" Hermione shouted in realization. "That's who you have to talk to, Harry; Ravenclaw house's ghost. If she stole the diadem from her mother, she most have been the last possessor of it, and therefore _allowed_ Tom Riddle to take it while he was still attending Hogwarts!"

Harry's eyes widened. "That's brilliant, Hermione!"

She blushed modestly. "It was mostly Draco's idea..."

Silence followed her words for a moment, almost deafening as Harry looked up at Draco, who avoided eye contact, and as Ron ran a hand through his gingery hair, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Finally, Harry spoke. "Well done, Draco." He extended a hand towards him, a genuine smile lighting up his bottle-green eyes.

Draco shook it, tentatively, and there was a look of mutual understanding growing between them as their hands met.

Hermione put a hand to her mouth, as though she were about to laugh, cry, smile, or all at once.

Ron coughed. "So where can we find the diadem-thingy?"

They let go, awkwardly, but Harry still held his gaze with Draco, as if he could see something...different. Through new eyes.

"We'll need to get into the Ravenclaw common room, if the Grey Lady's there." Said Hermione.

Draco cleared his throat. "They said..." he seemed almost mortified for remembering this bit of information. "They said that she's always lurking in the North Tower...the Bloody Baron goes up there to visit her sometimes..."

"Well, that's perfect!" Harry exclaimed. I doubt anyone'll be up there; there are still classes going on, I'm sure."

"Four Horcruxes down, three to go!" said Ron cheerily.

Hermione stared at him. Draco held back a laugh.

"Well...we destroyed Hufflepuff's cup, didn't we?"

Draco sniggered.

"Well...er...you sort of sounded like Thomas the Tank Engine, there..." said Harry, smirking slightly.

Ron and Draco both gave him a blank look. "What's _that_?" Ron asked in bewilderment.

"A muggle cartoon." Hermione said briskly, shooting Harry a look.

"Uncle Vernon would always cut it off before I could ever see the show to the end on television...damn those Dursleys..."

"What's a television?"

* * *

**Author's Note-** Hi! Did you like the story? Cool...enough of that, let's talk about some relevant issues. So, when I was writing the little television/exuberant Ron bit, I sort of discovered the old Thomas theme song...and then I put it on ListenOnRepeat...the repeat counter is now at 64...Don't laugh at me! That song is legit! My friend, who's 'missingvictorious' here on fanfiction, by the way, (If you like/loved the show Victorious, you should definitely check out her story, it's pretty amusing and I don't even watch it much.), well she told me that I was "sinking to a new low". :( Come on, guys, there's nothing wrong with listening to a theme song for Thomas the Tank Engine! Like, seriously, listen to the '80s version, it's ridiculously catchy. Or should I say..._Riddikulus_ly catchy...Hehe...no? Oh...I thought that was funny...*coughs* Well, good night! Thank you for reviewing and reading and saying nice things...I would reply to all of your reviews, but I don't want to be _too_ stalkerish. But, believe me, I do definitely read them, and take them to heart. Most of them make my day. So, yeah! Thanks for being wonderful readers. Bye!


	32. The Battle of Hogwarts

**_May 1_****_st_****_, 1998_****- ****_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_**

_"I know that you are preparing to fight. Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood. Give me Harry Potter and they shall not be harmed. Give me Harry Potter and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter and you will be rewarded. You have until midnight." –Voldemort's Ultimatum_

"Find the snake." Said Harry, rushing out of the Great Hall.

"Harry!" Hermione ran after him. "Where are you _going_!"

He stopped. "Room of Requirement, I've got to find the diadem! _Find the snake!_-"

"WELL, DON'T JUST STAND THERE, GRAB HIM ALREADY!" a frazzled Pansy Parkinson shouted.

Draco, who was still hidden underneath the Invisibility Cloak, appeared to the scene, his wand out.

"Draco!" Pansy shrieked. "What are you doing he-"

"Go to hell." He threw the cloak to Harry.

"Draco, what the bloody hell d'you think you're doing?!" screamed Slytherins from the corner of the room.

Professor McGonagall, who was still recovering from the shock of both the Golden Trio, _and_ Draco Malfoy's appearances, gathered herself together. "Mr. Filch!" her voice rang out over the heads of her students. "Would you please, lead Ms. Parkinson, along with the rest of Slytherin house, down to the dungeons?"

Gregory Goyle pushed his way into the front of the crowd, his wand raised high over his head. "Ha! _I _still have my wand!"

The rest of the Slytherins watched him, a few of them attempting to grab it from his pudgy hands.

"Expelliarmus!" A shaky, almost nervous, voice cried out.

Every Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin turned to look at Neville Longbottom, who caught Goyle's wand deftly with one hand.

McGonagall gave Neville one of her rare smiles. "_Now_, Mr. Filch. Would you..."

Filch, who had been picking at the many grey hairs on his chin, perked up. "Yes, yes, ma'am!" he shouted gleefully, gesturing for the dejected Slytherins to follow him.

"_All_ underage students, must evacuate immediately through the portrait hole in the Room of Requirement." She directed.

An uproar rose from the Gryffindor table, Ginny Weasley shouting loudly, "You _knew_ about that?!"

The headmistress nodded and gave a sort of smirk. "That still does exclude you from the evacuation, Ms. Weasley. I'm sure your mother and father will be waiting at the station. We've ordered the train to stop at Hogsmeade for _all_ underage."

Ginny stood up furiously. "But that's ridiculous! I want to fight!"

Suddenly, Hermione spoke. "But, Harry! He's in the Room of Hidden Things! You _won't_ be able to access the Room of Requirement unless he comes out!" She threw a fleeting look at Ginny, who fled from the Great Hall eagerly.

"GINNY, GET BACK HERE!" Ron bellowed, running after her.

"Ms. _Weasley_!" McGonagall shouted, to no avail. "Ms. Granger, would you please see to it, that Mr. Potter finds his way out of the Room of Requirement?"

"No, need." A deep voice murmured by the entryway. "We saw him leave as soon as we left the Hog's Head." Kingsley indicated the crowd of Order members behind him.

She clutched at her heart frightfully. "How did you arrive here without notice?"

"It was me!" a voice piped up from behind Kingsley. "Ginny gave me one of your D.A. coins." Tonks beamed at Neville, who nudged Luna with a grin.

"Nymphadora, I _told_ you to get back in there!" another voice shouted. Everyone turned to see the irate figure of Remus Lupin stalk up to the group. "Uh-oh..."

"Don't call me Nymphadora!" she shuddered, her hair turning a ghastly shade of orange.

He ignored her, dragging her back to the Room of Requirement. "I can't lose you again! Don't you understand..."

His voice trailed off, as they both went out of sight.

"Well." Said McGonagall, obviously flustered. "Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger, would you mind escorting the under-aged students to the Room of Requirement? Unless, of course..."

Draco looked around at the large group of first-fourth years, most of them apparently joined together, squirming fearfully. Most of the fifth and sixth years, however, seemed to blend in quite tenaciously with the seventh. He felt Hermione pull him away. "Well, come on then!" He called. The smaller students followed him swiftly out the door. Hermione lingered for a moment, watching. She smiled to herself as she saw Neville blushingly press a chaste kiss to Luna's lips, before he ushered her away to the group; the rest of Order of the Phoenix moving to join Professor McGonagall in the defense of the school.

* * *

**_May 2_****_nd_****_, 1998_****- ****_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry- _**_Midnight_

_"You have fought valiantly. Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery. Yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste. Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity. Treat your injured. I speak now, Harry Potter, Directly to you. You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself. I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harry Potter, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour."_

"Harry!" Hermione shouted. "You can't do this!"

Harry looked at her wearily, and Ron watched him, a hand on his shoulder. Draco was nowhere to be found.

"I'm not going to the Forbidden Forest, Hermione." He said finally.

"Thank good-!" she started, pulling him into a fierce hug.

"But I will have to. Eventually. Right now, I _need_ to go to Dumbledore's office; the Pensieve. Snape..."

And then Ron embraced him too, all of them clutching at each other as if it were the last.

Because this time, just this once...It might be.

* * *

**Author's Note-** Dear, dear, readers. I'm sorry to say that...*tear*...This was the last chapter! Runaway Redemption is over. I still cannot quite believe it...I hope you all enjoyed this story, and I am _so_ very grateful for your support and guidance in this past month. Goodbye. :(

Despite the fact that's it's reached the last.

I commend you all for sticking with me.

And reading consistently.

Sending me nice comments.

Following a young fetus-story, that has now, I hoped grown into a...teenager?

Lol I have no idea where this is going.

But, seriously...

Thank you for being there...

Until the very end.

:'(

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LOL JK No, there's one more chapter. D'you really think I would leave you all hanging like that? Especially since this chapter didn't have any Dramione action whatsoever, and was pretty much a filler. Hahaha. I really hoped I tricked you all. But, it would have been even better to see your faces in that reaction... :D Oh, by the way, of course I don't own those little Voldemort speech tidbits. I would have thought the quotations and italics would have been enough, but then I realized I do that all the time, so I just wanted to make sure! So yeah. One more chapter. I already have it planned out, but bear with me if I spend an extra day editing and perfecting it. I want it to be the best ending that I, Mrs. Handsome, can produce. So...bye?


	33. Redeeming the Last of Light

"Where's Draco?" Hermione nudged Ron.

"Dunno...shouldn't we be more worried about Harry?"

There was a silence. And then a loud crack reverberated loudly in Ron's ears, as he felt the pain ringing in his cheek. "What the bloody hell was that for?!" he demanded.

She stared at him for a moment, and then shook her head in disgust. "I'm going to find Draco."

Ron groaned regrettably. "Hermione, wait! I didn't mean it-"

"You _never_ mean it Ron, do you?" There was a tear threatening to escape by now, and she hid her face with her sleeve, sobbing silently. "I'm going!"

"'Mione, we have to stick together!" he threw his hands up in surrender, hoping she'd come around.

"_Alone_."

And with that, Hermione disappeared around the corridor, her sights set on Draco Malfoy.

She didn't dare call his name, for she was sure the word would get to the Death-Eaters reluctant to retreat. Her heart pounded violently in her chest, as she entered the Great Hall, now arranged as a sort of public infirmary for the wounded, and memorial for the slaughtered.

With each step, her fears lightened their grip considerably off her chest, yet every innocent carcass stopped her in her tracks. She paused for a moment, noticing the Weasleys off in a corner, Mrs. Weasley's head resting on her husband's shoulder as she wept.

'It's okay...it's perfectly alright...they're just waiting for Ron...they're waiting for Ron...' She told herself, as she inched towards them, suppressing the abysmal thoughts that forced their way into her mind. Finally, they noticed her. "Mrs. Weasley!" she started. "Ron's alri..."

And then she saw George, look up at her with tears in his eyes, blood streaming down his face. He was clutching a body. 'No...no...no!...it...it can't...'

And then Ginny was in her arms, refusing to look in the unseeing eyes of her brother, wallowing in the pits of grief, yet relieved to see yet another familiar face. "Harry? Is he..." her voice resembled a dying rose petal in its fragility.

And then she turned around to see the horror in Ron's eyes as he encountered the loss of Fred, his face as pale as a sheet of parchment. It didn't matter that he had been an absolute prat earlier. He was forgiven. What else could Hermione do? But she thought to herself what Harry must have went through, seeing all of the loved and departed simply strewn about that way. The guilt that Lord Voldemort tapped into easily, with the simple threat that sent Harry over the edge.

"Hermione?"

She was brought back to the Great Hall once more, the morbid thoughts pushed away again. Ginny was staring at her, decidedly brushing away the tears from her face.

"Did Harry...?" Ginny couldn't finish, the idea of Harry returning to the Forbidden Forest striking her like a clenched fist. And Hermione couldn't bring herself to contradict her, to admit that Harry did indeed head to the Forbidden Forest at Voldemort's request. She wiped away one of her own tears, and nodded.

"Hermione!" she was shaking her head furiously. "Are you sure?"

"I have to go, Ginny."

"Where are you going?"

Hermione gulped, remembering the real reason for her arrival at the Great Hall, and feeling awfully guilty about it. "To find Draco." She took a step forward.

"What d'you-!" Ginny started, taking a step back and bumping right into Ron, who was crying silently, his ginger hair matted to his sweaty forehead. "Ron!"

He embraced her fiercely, their tears mingling together in a wretched dance of bereavement.

Hermione began to walk away, trying not to think about the look in George's eyes, or tenderness of Ginny's voice, the tears running down Ron's face...

She looked down at her feet as she walked, refusing to steal a glance at the small cots scattered around, in fear of another death; another departed.

"Hermione?" a voice echoed to the left of her, and she heard fast footsteps down a corridor. "Hermione?!"

Looking up, her heart flooded with relief, despite the pain of previous events. "Draco! Where the hell have you been?"

He disregarded the words coming out of her mouth, for about the millionth time. "Hermione. I've been looking for you, everywhere!"

"Listen, Harry went to the forest." This time the words were whispered carefully.

Draco looked puzzled. "What do you mean? Potter, couldn't have..."

"We don't have time for discussion, I just wanted to make sure you knew! Where've you _been_?"

"Looking for my mother, but I couldn't find her, so I went after you? Anyways, the point is-"

She wrapped her arms around him swiftly, burrowing her head into the crook of his neck. Taken aback, he petted her hair awkwardly. "What's happened?" He didn't get an answer, and she instead sobbed silently into him. Draco sighed. "Well, if we both survive..." She broke away angrily. "Don't you _dare_ say that!"

He smirked. "I was actually going to say, that if we _do, _maybe you'd want to...I don't know...do something together? It'd be nice to not have to be on the run all the time...Either way, I'm shocked. I mean, I didn't know you'd be so clingy...I know you can't resist me, but still, I suppose I'm flattered." He leaned forward, his nose barely skimming her forehead.

Hermione rolled her eyes for a moment, and then tapped her foot expectantly, one arm still wrapped around him. "Well?"

The smirk again. "Well, what?"

"Well, aren't you going to kiss me?"

The blush that arose in her cheeks did not go by unnoticed. "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist this."

"I totally can't resist an unearthly pale, blond creature that tends to cry in bathrooms with the company of a moaning ghost." she said dryly, attempting to disentangle her arm from his.

His face suddenly became serious. "It won't matter if we're both dead."

Hermione frowned, Fred's unmoving face appearing suddenly in her mind. She pushed it away. "We're going to be fine. We just need to kill the snake, like Harry said."

He frowned as well, the look on her face filling him with remorse. "Here's to survival." Draco said instead, pushing up her cheek with his finger. She sucked in a deep breath. He smiled, leaning in to barely touch her lips with his.

"You have something on your nose." He whispered smugly, his breath warming her face slightly, expecting her to avert her eyes and indulge in embarrassing conversation. It was infuriating, quite infuriating for Hermione.

She sighed. "You have three seconds."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Three seconds? For what, might I ask, Miss. Granger?"

"One." She started, leaning closer ever so slightly.

"Two. Three." He finished, an air of competence about it.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake!" She grabbed him by the neck, capturing his lips with hers demandingly, with a strangled cry. Surprised, Draco kissed indolently, his hands slowly moving to her waist. Her fingers progressed towards his hair, ruffling it fondly, and they travelled once again to his neck, and then rested his cheek.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS GOING ON?!"

Breaking apart guiltily, they turned around, Hermione keen enough to pull her wand out of her pocket. Yet no one was there. Draco watched her amusedly, still breathing quite roughly himself, and wondering how she could remain composed enough to act quickly.

She walked tentatively into the Great Hall, Draco following behind her, his hand resting protectively on her shoulder.

There were only the silent bodies, and those nursing the wounded left behind. Everyone else seemed to graduate towards the courtyard, their wands in hand.

"NO!" Ginny's horrifying scream struck them both still.

Draco turned once to see Hermione's reaction, to stop the tears before they began to flow. But, Hermione ran.

* * *

"Hermione, no!" Draco grabbed her wrist, dragging her back forcibly.

"Come forth, to the side of triumph and power. Come forth, and I shall spare the lives of you and your families. I, the Dark Lord, am most merciful...Who might this be?"

With painstaking, but sure steps, Neville Longbottom limped over, his face set in a determined stare.

"Neville, no!" Ginny yelled. Her father was holding her back by the shoulders, a lone tear running down his own face. The crowd of Hogwarts students, teachers, and Order members wore ominous, hopeless faces.

Hermione wanting to hold her, hold Draco, hold...hold anything. She felt as if she could not feel anymore. She held Draco's hand, and he squeezed it. There was no need for words.

She couldn't remember what happened next. But she did hear, "I'll join you when hell freezes over!" erupt from Neville's lips, and she watched Neville crash into the pillars, with a flick of Voldemort's wand, his own lips twisted in displeasure.

And then she could see Harry disappear from Hagrid's arms for a moment, Hagrid gasping loudly as Harry pulled his Invisibility Cloak over himself, Voldemort clueless to the whole phenomenon.

But nothing went by unnoticed, and the crowd cheered relentlessly, Voldemort silencing them immediately and looking around for the source of the commotion. His eyes landed on Ginny for a moment, and then shifted to Hermione, who didn't give him a second thought. Instead, her own eyes followed Harry, who tried his best not to knock over random items or run into anyone.

"Draco Malfoy."

His cold words cut through her like the sharpest of knives, the most unforgiving of curses.

"Draco, no!"

It was Narcissa's voice now. She looked worn and disheveled, her blonde hair stringy, and her black cloak ripped at places. There was a pleading tone in her voice, and she rushed forward.

Voldemort need not look. Narcissa was pushed to the ground, with less than a twitch of his long, white fingers.

"Dead, I see?"

It took a while to register with Hermione. But she felt Draco's fingers, which were intertwined tightly with hers, loosen. She felt him inch away from her. She watched him walk forward. She wanted to scream, shout, grab him and run. But she felt as though she couldn't move. Every bone, every muscle in her body went numb.

"How's the afterlife?" Voldemort asked nonchalantly, fingering the Elder Wand, Nagini at his bared heels.

Draco didn't answer. He knew what was coming. There was no need for unnecessary conversation. He'd planned this in his mind. The ultimate form of redemption. The last of the grey had vanished.

"Draco!" The words flew from her mouth finally. This couldn't, this couldn't be happening...

And then he fell, a horrible scream uttering from his rosy lips; his mother's wand still encased in his pale, bruised hands. And then Hermione was on her knees, shaking him violently, as though he were only in a deep slumber...he'd wake up eventually. And then she too collapsed against his body, her head resting against a heart that would no longer beat.

* * *

**Author's Note-** I hope you understand, that this had to happen. I honestly don't know what to say. Yes, this is the last chapter. Um...I hope you know that I cried when I wrote that last bit...envisioning it. Please don't hate me. Just know, that everything I said in that last author's note, I meant. I really do appreciate you all. There will be a sequel, as some of you guessed. If you can tap into the Hermione side of yourself, perhaps you can guess what the sequel entails. I'll post another "chapter" explaining what I'm doing with the sequel and other author-y stuff later. Goodbye, my dear friends. ;(


	34. Important Author's Note & Other Stuff

Hello, my dear readers!

So, today I'm pretty much going to explain what's going on with this story, other story ideas I have in mind, as well as other random things I'll probably end up blabbering about. Lol :)

First off, if you're wondering still about Runaway Redemption, no I'm not continuing this story. That's it. That's final, no qualms about it. Chapter 33 was most definitely the last chapter of this story. _However_, yes, there will most definitely be a _sequel_. I don't have an idea for the name/title of it yet, but I've been working on ideas for it for quite a while, and I do have a rough plotline for it. As for when exactly I'm going to be posting the sequel...

Well, that brings us to number two! So, in the month that I've been writing for this story, I've had sooo many different ideas for other new stories to write. But, since I'm a disciplined little author, I've forced myself to continue writing this main story, and instead I've created a list of one-shot and novella ideas. No, I'm not showing you the list, because...well, I'd like to surprise you? I actually have no idea. But ANYWAYS. Here's the catch. I'm going to be starting school quite soon (in seventeen days, exactly). That means I'll have less time to write and post. I'm planning on posting about twice a week, but if things get too rough, and I get too busy in a period of time, I might only be able to post once a week. :( That's part of the reason why I posted daily (or at least tried to) for Runaway Redemption; because I didn't want to switch schedules right in the middle of the story, or even end up abandoning it.

Therefore, number three. I have a proposition for you. In the next seventeen days I can post only one-shots (or little mini two-five chaptered stories) until I go back to school. When I go back to school, when my new schedule starts, I'll begin the sequel. However, if you want it to be vice versa, where I start the sequel now, and then post the one-shots and new stories after the sequel, then I don't really have a problem with that. Personally, I think doing the one-shots and mini-stories would be better to do in this little two-and-a-half-week (I don't think that's even a word/thing...) period, because it would get my creative juices flowing without the commitments of one main story. Not that I didn't enjoy writing Runaway Redemption, but I kind of miss writing one-shots and such (even though I only have one one-shot up; Moving Staircases, which happens to be my first-ever post on fanfiction, and...yeah I should shut up now...).

So! You can leave your response/opinions of this in the form of a review (or you could actually review the story, who am I to judge lol). I was thinking about doing one of those poll thingies for it on my profile, but I doubt people actually look at that, and I should probably update it soon, haha. I'll probably end up doing both, to get maximum input on this whole thing.

Thank you again for being wonderful readers (I cannot say this enough), and please do give me your input for both this and/or Runaway Redemption itself. I love you all, bye! |:')


	35. New Sequel?

Runaway Redemption's sequel is UP! It's called Retracing Resurrection in case you were wondering. I don't think I'll be able to properly post the link here, but I only have 6 stories on my profile, so it shouldn't really be difficult to get it from there. :) In case you need a bit of a refresher, I will be updating the sequel twice a week (allowing some lenience for when work gets too stressful at times). The next chapter should be up by the end of this week. Speaking of, if you're attending school this year, and perhaps you've already had your first day, how are you? I know this is kind of small talk, but I'm genuinely interested, haha. Well, without further ado...I'm going to sleep. ;) Bye!


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